


Desiderium

by LadyStardust



Category: Labyrinth (1986)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-03-07
Updated: 2013-05-20
Packaged: 2017-12-04 13:46:43
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 24
Words: 94,787
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/711416
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LadyStardust/pseuds/LadyStardust
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Desiderium: an ardent longing for a thing lost.  In latin, the verb to wish for.</p><p>There is a rule in the Underground. If any food or drink is consumed there, one must remain for eternity. The girl who ate the peach and forgot everything - she should never have been able to leave in the first place.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Every year the ground dies. It grows cold and the world retreats. A blank slate of purity is given to us. Reminding us, that we have another chance.

Sarah Williams hated spring. She hated the way it was always raining, she hated the way it was teasingly hot and cold at the same time and she hated the fact that her birthday happened to be in the spring. She had never liked her birthday as it had become something of a tradition for unfortunate things to happen on her birthday. There was the year her grandmother had died on her birthday, then the year her father had announced his engagement and the year she had broken her ankle. She spent the entire day on guard waiting for something to happen. Hopefully this year it would just be something small like the year her birthday cake had accidentally gotten lost at the bakery.

But then there were the birthday cards. There was nothing worse she thought to herself, than birthday cards. These days a card cost over five dollars only to contain the most trite and useless statements. Their purpose was to prove the receiver wasn't forgotten in this world and that, she thought to herself, was horribly depressing. She'd rather be forgotten then reminded that the only time people did remember her was her birthday. The only cards she ever got were from people who did so out of obligation. With the exception of the card her now thirteen year old brother sent her every year.

Sarah didn't have anybody in her life that she'd really call a friend. She'd always had a group of kids she hung out with growing up but around the time she was fifteen they'd all drifted apart. After that Sarah spent a lot of time alone. She had never really been able to make any new friends afterwards. She'd tried of course, but she could never really connect with people. They said she made them uncomfortable. This didn't really bother her as much as others assumed it did. Sure, oftentimes she would think that it might be nice to have someone to go out with once in a while but for the most part she was content with solitude. She had always been a child who'd spent a great deal of time in her own head and as she'd grown up this had remained the case.

Luckily this year had so far passed without incident. She had gone to work avoiding as many people as possible, eating lunch quietly in her office instead of going out like she normally did, and then driving home where she had an early dinner before eventually retiring to bed.

Sarah now worked as a junior editor for a moderately sized publishing company. She would get stacks of books sent to her department every week and would often volunteer to read through them. She had always loved books, but there was one in particular she was looking for. An idea that had always festered at the back of her mind of a story that she was certain had to exist. She had tried writing it down but she didn't even know what the story was about exactly, just that it existed. So every time she'd tried to sit down and describe anything about it at all, she'd only come up with her bored maze doodles.

There had been a bouquet of tiger lilies waiting for her when she'd returned home from her father which were currently resting on her dresser. She peered at them over the top of her book. She sighed as she looked at them, they were quite lovely, it was a shame they'd likely be dead before long. For some reason, flowers never seemed to live long around her. She actually found the less she touched or even came close to them, the better they faired. Thankfully her father remembered that she didn't really like to handle flowers and had sent them already done up in a vase but she knew they'd still be gone before the weekend.

She idly flipped the page of her book when the page accidentally caught her skin leaving a thin cut.

"Damn." She cursed and put the finger to her mouth climbing out of bed to look through her dresser drawers for a band-aid. She pulled out the box but something underneath it caught her eye. A deep red cover, well worn. She reached for the book curiously.  _The Labyrinth_. Odd, she thought to herself, she didn't recognize this book. She flipped absently to the opening page.

She saw the words on the page but they all began to blur together and her head began to spin. She gripped the side of the dresser to steady herself and in the process accidentally knocked over her flowers. The vase shattered on the floor spilling water and glass everywhere.

"Oh no!" She let the book drop, forgotten as if it was never really there. She reached to pick up a flower but as soon as she touched it, the flower seemed to almost wilt before her eyes.

Sarah looked at what was only moments ago a healthy flower in shock. Sure flowers had never liked her but they never seemed to shrivel at her touch before. This was a new and creepy twist. Sarah turned her hand over examining it. Her index finger was still bleeding from where she had cut it. She ran her other index finger over the abrasion thoughtfully.

Maybe…

"No." she said aloud firmly. That was easily the stupidest idea she'd ever had. Her blood was not toxic to flowers.

Sarah knelt down and picked up all the pieces of glass she could see. She was careful to avoid touching anymore flowers with her cut hand however. Not for any real reason, she told herself, just because. When all the glass had been taken care of she noticed the red book lying where she'd dropped it. She picked it up running her hand over the cover. She couldn't say why exactly but something about this particular book unnerved her.

She took the book and climbed back into bed once again opening the book to its first page.

After about an hour she had read the book cover to cover. She couldn't of stopped if she had wanted to. There was something about it that pulled at her senses. She was certain she must have read it before as there were passages that had seemed so familiar she could have quoted them word for word but at the same time she was equally positive she'd never laid eyes on this book before.

She pulled out a pen from her bedside table and began making markings in the margins of the book. It had become something of a habit of hers to edit already published pieces thinking about how they could have been improved and where some of the flaws in the writing were. She would think carefully about the words they'd chosen and what they really meant. Her colleagues would tease her telling her that she should just read these books instead of tearing through them with her pen. She would always tell them the same thing, never take anything for granted. Published pieces were no exception.

The passages that were giving her the most trouble were the ones with the Goblin King. She kept circling every instance of Goblin King wondering why he was never given another name. Somehow she knew that he had a name beyond "Goblin King". The scene in the tunnels, the girl looks away when confronted with the Goblin King out of fear but that wasn't right. It wasn't fear it was a reaction to him and his intensity. Then of course there was the first scene. The book had forgotten something. She wrote in the margins next to the girl's speech "What nobody knew was that the Goblin King had fallen in love with the girl". She didn't know how but she knew this to be true.

She spent another good hour re-reading the book for a second time, trying to see if perhaps she'd missed an instance of his name. She didn't know why it was bothering her so much but she knew that he had one so it had to be in there somewhere.

So she read it a third time. Then a fourth time. By this point Sarah was flipping through the pages agitatedly growling in frustration. It was at the tip of her tongue trying to get out but no matter how hard she tried she couldn't reach it.

Furiously she threw the book across the room hitting the mirror atop her dresser. She flopped onto her back and threw her pillow over her head. She took two deep breaths and then pulled her head out from under it. She groaned when she looked at the clock. It was past 1am and she had to be up early for work in the morning. So now not only was she going to be annoyed but sleep deprived as well. She sighed and dragged her hands across her face. She reached for her bedside light and flicked it off.

She spoke aloud to no one in particular "I just wish you could tell me your name Goblin King."

She closed her eyes and laughed to herself. "Oh but what no one knew was that the junior editor had gone completely mental and clearly the fictional Goblin King would be waiting to cart her off to the crazy house."

"Well, I wouldn't call it a crazy house exactly although certainly the Goblins do try their best."

Sarah gasped and bolted upright. She glanced furiously around her room for the intruder hoping to God she had imagined that. Given the man leaning casually against her dresser running one of her tiger lilies through his hand she figured not. She pulled the covers up close to her and and tried to slow her breathing. This was definitely a dream. She closed her eyes and counted to three. When she opened them he was still there.

"Hello Sarah."

She couldn't see his face but she felt certain that he was smirking at her. Sarah's eyes darted to the cordless phone currently sitting across the room on her vanity. She silently cursed herself for not having enough sense to have it by her bedside. She tried to regain her voice best she was able.

"Who are you and what are you doing in my house? How did you get in here?"

At this he stepped forward into the light coming from her bedroom window. She saw that she was right, he was smirking at her. His hair was wild and large, a white blonde that Sarah had never seen in nature. His face was full of sharp angles and he was wearing head to toe black which almost looked like armor. But what caught her eye the most was the horned pendant he wore around his neck. He was incredibly handsome there was no doubt about that, but the pendant…the pendant was something else. Sarah had the inexplicable urge to grab it. She forced herself to tear her eyes away from the pendant and look at him. She would show no fear. If he was going to harm her then she wanted him to know she would put up a fight.

He twirled the lily between his fingers gracefully seemingly unaware of the girl giving him a once over.

"Come now Sarah," He met her gaze. Two different eyes she noticed.

"You know very well who I am. You always have."

"You're him aren't you? You're the Goblin King!" She hadn't realized she'd spoken until the words had already left her mouth. Where had that come from? As soon as she heard it however, she realized it was true. This was the Goblin King, nevermind that he was supposed to be fictional, she knew who it was just the same she knew her own name.

He smiled at her. Not a smirk but a genuine smile. She noticed that his canines had a definite point to them. He stepped closer extending his hand to offer her the lily. She reached out her left hand to take it but he pulled it back slightly.

"Ah ah, other hand precious."

She furrowed her brow in confusions then remembered the cut on her index finger which still hadn't been bandaged. She took the flower with her right. The left side of his mouth twitched at her confusion.

"Well now that we've established who I am, the how should be rather obvious don't you agree Sarah, love?"

Sarah looked at the flower currently between her fingers. The petals had already started to droop. She placed it delicately on top of her comforter staring at it. She didn't look at him.

"You're here because I made a wish aren't you?"

Just as before the words left her mouth before she'd had time to consider them. Knowing she was correct.

"Yes."

He placed a gloved hand underneath her chin pulling it slightly forcing her to meet his gaze. He wasn't smiling any longer. The way he was looking at her, touching her, she felt all the air go out of her. This wasn't right. The world was wrong. Something was horribly and desperately wrong with the world. She reached out a hand to touch his pendant. There was something there. She knew there was something there. He grabbed her hand with his free one as she moved to reach for it his eyes never leaving her face.

"Not yet."

He let her hand go and she moved to touch his face. He watched her hand trace the angles of his cheekbones. Running her thumb over his arched brows and then down his jaw line. He didn't say a word. Content to let her examine and explore.

"Jareth" she whispered it under her breath. That was his name. He nodded curtly but he didn't need to confirm it to her.

She let her hand drop away from his face but continued to stare at him.

"Why did I know that?"

Something was pushing at the back of her mind. It was getting painful now.

"Everything else I could have learned or inferred from that book. But I searched it for your name it was never in there. So how could I know it?"

She pulled her blankets closer to her chest. She wasn't scared before but she was now. This wasn't right. Nothing about this was right. She wasn't sure if she was more frightened of him or herself in that moment.

He dropped his hand from her chin and twisted his wrist. A perfectly shaped bloom-down cheeked peach appeared there. He considered it for a moment running it along the back of his hand. Sarah figured on any other day an armored man in her bedroom at 1am producing a peach out of thin air would have given her serious pause. Today however, it seemed almost ordinary.

"Sarah Williams. The girl who ate the peach and forgot everything."

He let the peach roll to the centre of his palm and stretched it out towards her.

"No longer."

She stared at the peach. She reached her hand out to take it. But he pulled back slightly.

"Sarah think carefully. This is not a gift that I can take back once freely accepted. There is no going back from this. You made a wish. I can offer but I cannot force you to take it."

Sarah was still focused on the peach.

"Sarah." At her name she snapped her head up to look at him. "Do you want to know?"

Every ounce of sense she had was telling her not to take anything from strange men who appeared in her bedroom bearing fruit and he certainly was strange. The thing clawing at the back of her mind was telling her he wasn't new, to take the peach. To know.

She didn't even hesitate. She reached her hand out further for the peach. This time he allowed her to take it. He smiled at her as she bit into it.

She felt like she was on fire. Every part of her was burning up. The air had left her lungs and she gasped trying to take in a breath. Her body went slack letting the peach fall from her hand to the floor. Her head hit the pillow and her eyes began to blur. She could see the Goblin King watching her making no move to help.

"What…have you…done…" she was able to choke out before the real world seemed to dissolve before her eyes. A million and one images flashed before her eyes.

Her little brother and a harmless wish…thirteen hours…Hogwart…no he wasn't the name was Hoggle…a great beast…no a rock caller…Ludo…a little white dog and his knight…the valiant Sir Didymus…valiant from valere…to have power…

And just like that she remembered.


	2. Chapter 2

Sarah screamed and bolted upright in bed. She grabbed her bedside lamp and hurled it at the Goblin King who quickly sidestepped it before grabbing her by her wrists. She struggled against his grasp but he was much stronger than her.

"How could you? Thirteen years! You stole my memories! You had no right to them! You have no power over me!" She continued to struggle but it was no use. He had her tight. She allowed herself to calm slightly before recoiling back and spitting in his face. He released her letting her wrists fall. He wiped the saliva off his face with a gloved hand still staring at her. This time she stared back not out of curiosity but defiance.

"Sarah…"

Amazing she thought. How he could turn her name from temptation to danger at the drop of a hat. He was not pleased but frankly, she did not care.

"Thirteen years" she whispered "you had my memories for thirteen years." She felt as though all the anger had been drained out of her to be replaced with abject sadness. "My friends…"

"Have barely noticed your absence." He finished for her. He was back to standing at the foot of her bed tugging at the bottom of his gloves. "By erasing your memories, the memories of all your companions were erased too."

Sarah stared at him. Still standing there speaking to her as if it were a casual conversation one might have instead of discussing the loss of hers and now apparently her friend's memories. She threw the covers off her bed and stormed out to stand in front of him. She barely reached his chin but she didn't care. He peered down at her with interest.

"Why did you do it? Why? Were you so unable to cope with your defeat that you had to wipe it from my mind? Why now after thirteen years did you give it back? Why did any of this matter so much to you?"

He let out a deep sigh and Sarah noticed rather startlingly he looked almost worn. He leaned against the bed post and allowed his head to roll back on his neck so he was staring at the ceiling.

"Dearest despite what your threats and saliva seem certain of, I can assure you I had no part in the removal of yours or your friend's memories. The only thing I have done in the last thirteen years is return them to you because you called me. You asked to know and now you do so despite what you may think, no none of this matters to me very much at all. I was merely fulfilling a wish. As always."

He rolled his head back down to meet her gaze. One eyebrow cocked expectantly at her.

"If you wish to continue spitting at me darling, please –" he made a little half bow and an elaborate roll of the wrist.

She threw her eyes to the ground eventually her desire to know outweighing her desire to keep yelling at him.

"Okay let's say for argument's sake that I believe you." The left side of his mouth switched in amusement. "Which I'm not saying I do." She steeled her gaze. "So then what happened to my memories if you didn't take them? Who took them?"

He chuckled in amusement and pulled a crystal out of thin air. He let it roll back and forth on his hand following it with his eyes.

"Sarah Williams. The girl who ate the peach…and forgot everything."

He held out the crystal in his palm. In it she could see a familiar scene. Masked individuals in elaborate gowns swaying and swirling in time with the music. It lit her dark room up entirely. She found herself staring at apparition transfixed. She thought how it was funny that these memories had been held from her for thirteen years and yet looking at the scene, she remembered it as if it was only moments ago. She found herself waiting for his appearance in his sapphire suit but he snapped his hand closed and the crystal disappeared. Sarah shook her head to try and bring herself back to reality. The crystal had been strangely hypnotic. She looked up at him angrily.

"What was that for?"

He smirked at her and tilted his head to the left. "You asked."

She crossed her arms in front of her chest. "Uh no I believe I asked where my memories went if you weren't the one who stole them, which again, I haven't ruled out yet by the way, and instead you decide to send me for a little trip down hypnotic memory lane."

He raised his eyebrows and moved to stand in front of her bureau lightly fingering the items on top of it.

"Ah but it all comes back to that one memory Sarah."

Her name was suddenly carrying that familiar temptation again. She cursed silently. The scene in the ballroom was not one of her finer moments.

"Oh? Now how's that?" She leaned against her bedpost and he turned to face her from across the room mirroring her position leaning against the bureau. She noticed that he didn't exactly look comfortable and instead appeared, she supposed, anxious. He started pulling at the bottom of his gloves again.

"The peach, was a last resort. It was meant to trap you."

"Yeah I know that much. Dancing the night away until time ran out in the beautiful crystalline ballroom."

His eyes snapped up to meet hers.

"No. Not just in the ballroom. In the Labyrinth. The Underground."

Her brows knitted together. "What?"

He let out a deep sigh casting his eyes downwards again as he spun his wrist to produce another crystal running it over the back of his hand.

"There is a rule in the Underground. If any food or drink is consumed there, one must remain for eternity. Ideally you should have eaten the whole peach but the bite was enough. It should have trapped you there. Even if you'd won back the baby, you should have remained."

He twisted the crystal and it became a peach. He stared at it curiously.

Sarah was silent for a long while before finally speaking.

"Why?"

The peach disappeared.

"Because nobody ever leaves the Labyrinth. Not really."

He turned back around to walk over to her dresser where the flowers were currently strewn all over the floor. He began to pick them up one by one. Sarah caught herself starring at him carefully taking each bloom and placing them on the bureau. She shook her head to come out of it for what must have been the fifth time that night.

"Okay, but it didn't work. You have no power over me remember?"

He stood up, his back still towards her toying with the last flower in his hands. He placed it silently on the dresser with its companions.

"To be completely honest I'm not certain. I have my theories but that is all they are. Theories and nothing more. What I can be certain of is that the magic acted differently in you and instead of trapping you in the Labyrinth it chose to trap the memories in your mind. Until tonight when you accepted the peach and remembered everything."

He turned back to face her. She ran her hand through her hair. It was rather a lot to take in. She walked to stand next to him at the dresser facing the mirror. Their reflections were rather a sight to behold. The Goblin King in his full black armored regalia and she in an old torn nightdress and with greasy hair. In spite of herself she began to laugh.

He turned to look at her his brows furrowing in confusion.

"Sarah?"

"I'm sorry," she gasped out between laughs "it's just so ridiculous."

She just kept laughing until she finally fell upon the bed and the one flower he had separated from the rest. She took a deep breath and pulled the flower out from beneath her and watched for the second time that evening a flower wilt in her hands. That broke her out of her laughter

"Damn." She swore. She held up the wilted flower for him to see.

"Do you have any idea why this keeps happening? It's really starting to freak me out."

He took the now dead flower from her hand and ran his gloved finger over her paper cut.

"There. The cut. Your blood has touched the flower."

She yanked her hand back quickly.

"Oh please my blood is not toxic to flowers."

He smiled at her and removed one of his gloves. His hands were long and slender and he picked up one of the flowers that he had placed upon her dresser. As soon as it touched his hand it died. Sarah recoiled in horror.

He examined the flower curiously before placing it back atop the pile.

"I expect eventually your touch will be able to do the thing."

"What?" She pulled both of her hands into her chest. "I don't want that! Why on earth would that happen. Actually no, how even  _could_  that happen?"

He tugged his glove back on and leaned against the dresser.

"It will happen to you for the same reason it happens to me. Because you are no longer part of this world Sarah. Every part of it will reject you. It is clearly happening slowly over time, obviously your blood has a stronger reaction than your touch because it is a more direct line, but eventually your touch will have the same effect."

She let her hands fall to her sides and stood up to stand in front of him.

"What do you mean I'm no longer a part of this world? I'm human!"

He looked at her kindly smiling lightly. The first time it was not a smile at her expense.

"Sarah Williams, I don't know why but the spell that should have trapped you in the Underground has never really worked properly on you. You are no longer compatible with this world because you currently should be in the Underground. Your loyalty can only lie to one world at a time and by biting that peach some thirteen years ago now, your choice was made. This world is not your home anymore. It hasn't been for quite some time now."

Sarah forced a laugh and then stared at him with amusement. There was absolutely no possible way this was real. An hour ago she'd read a book. That was it. Now suddenly the earth was no longer her home, she could kill flowers with a touch and there was a very medieval looking otherworldly man standing in her bedroom producing peaches and crystals out of thin air. She grabbed the little red book off her dresser and threw it at his chest.

"Oh like hell it's not. This is a trap isn't it Goblin King. You come here, thirteen years later, yes don't think I didn't notice the symmetry to try and lure me back to the Underground to be, I don't know your Goblin Bride or something. Well tough luck because I think you'll find that I do in fact have a home here and unlike dingy castles full of chickens and goblins it's one I actually like. So you can just bugger the hell off."

She spun around to leave the room but he caught her by the arm yanking her in close. She let out a little yelp and tried to push away but he held her tightly. He pushed her forehead upwards to meet his eyes and leaned down slowly leaving scant inches between his face and hers.

"You presume too much. I think you'll find that I could care less about whether you returned to the Underground or not. As for bride, my my my we do think rather highly of ourselves don't we?" He moved his hand from her forehead to run his thumb over his lips his own mouth quirking into a grin. She jerked her head away but he grabbed her again by the forehead forcing her back. "As for you having a life here, I see no evidence of this. Correct me if I'm wrong but was today not your birthday precious? Well other than the flowers, I see no cards, no remains of a party or even well wishes. Instead I find you sitting in bed with an old book all alone. You're always all alone up here Sarah and you know why? You unnerve them Sarah. Something about you is off to them. They avoid you and as a result you'll never be able to get close to anyone. You'll never have a family, you'll never have real friends and you'll always be passed over for promotions at work because something about you just isn't right. It will only get worse as you get older as even your own family pulls away from you. Been a long time since you've seen them in person hasn't it Sarah?"

Tears stung at her eyes as she took deep breaths hoping they would go away. It wasn't fair. He had no right to criticize her life. She bit down on her lip trying to steady her voice before she spoke.

"It doesn't matter. It's my life. I have a right to it and a right to try and be happy. This is my home!"

She felt the first hot angry tears begin to spill down her cheeks and he wiped them away with his gloved finger.

"What you don't realize in all your stubbornness to save the only life you've ever known, the only life you could save - is just how desperately unhappy you are. Convenient your memory seems. Choosing to neglect the fact that your life Underground could be so much more. Instead of anonymity, a life encased with everyone that brings nothing. You used to dream of a new life somewhere else. Look at what I'm offering you Sarah."

She stared at his angular face the tears still slowly and silently pouring down her cheeks. She took a deep breath.

"Why should I trust you? Why should I come with you?"

He smiled at her.

"If you're curious. If you're fascinated and scared. Then come with me."

He let go of her now and she took a step back wrapping her arms around herself, her eyes never leaving his face.

"I don't want to leave my home."

He sighed and crossed his arms in front of his chest staring at her impatiently.

"As always I will be generous Sarah. I will give you a choice. Come with me, and if after a certain length of time you still wish to come back home" he waved his arm around with a distasteful look upon his face "then I will not stop you."

Her eyes narrowed at him suspiciously.

"How long exactly?"

He smiled stepping towards her tilting her chin up with the tips of his fingers.

"Let's say thirteen weeks. For symmetry's sake shall we?"

She stepped back from him. He rolled his eyes scoffing at her.

"Do not be so foolish as to refuse your dreams a second time Sarah. There is no child at stake this time. There is only you."

Sarah was silent for a long time. She cast her eyes around the room taking in all her belongings, her home. Was she really considering this? Like it or not she couldn't deny that she wanted to go. She wanted to go so badly it almost ached within her begging her to just stop listening to reason and say yes. She lightly touched one of the flowers on her dresser watching it wither as her cut finger grazed it.

"You give me your word? You'll return me here after thirteen weeks?"

He gave a curt nod.

"If that is your desire I will take you home."

She took a deep breath.

"Okay. I'll go."

He grinned toothily before waving his hand producing a crystal.

"As you wish."

He threw it to the floor where it shattered, blinding everything with a bright white light.


	3. Chapter 3

When Sarah opened her eyes she was no longer standing in her bedroom but rather in the middle of the castle's throne room. It was more or less just as it was last time she was there minus both the goblins and chickens. Her head began to swim and her legs crumpled beneath her giving way to vertigo.

He strode over to his throne where somehow gracefully draped himself over the armrest. He regarded her shakily trying to regain some balance.

"Ah yes, the sensation does take some getting used to."

She tried to straighten herself out best she could and stand tall to face him but found she was still somewhat weak on her feet. Nevermind she was still in her nightshirt with no shoes on and shivering from the draft that was coming through the old stones.

"How come that didn't happen last time you brought me here?"

He smiled and produced a crystal lazily waving it back and forth between his hand.

"Children are much easier to transport between realms. Although you were scarcely a child last time, by all technicalities you still were one. Adults are much more difficult to transport back and forth although it helps immensely if you carry no doubt about the journey with you. Doubt has a tendency to hamper magic somewhat."

Sarah took a deep breath to try and forced herself into a more controlled position. An involuntary shudder rippled through her body a combination of the cold and the implications of what he had just said.

"So wait, you're saying that if I hadn't wanted to come…you wouldn't be able to take me?"

She wrapped her arms around her trying to seem natural about it but in reality she was freezing and was trying to keep herself from shivering. It might have been spring aboveground but it was still maddeningly cold outside and the Underground seemed to follow by the same meteorological rules.

He continued flipping the crystal back and forth between his hands not even bothering to look up when he answered.

"No, I said it hampered it, I did not say it stopped it entirely. It simply would have been a more painful journey for you. Likely instead of standing there trying not to shiver you'd be passed out on the floor." He smiled in amusement and threw the crystal in the air causing it to vanish. He pressed his gloved fingers together now regarding her rather closely. "However, you seemed to have very little doubt about returning here despite it being a place you could not even remember scant hours ago."

She shuddered again, damn that draft.

"Rather interesting wouldn't you agree? I expected much more of a struggle from you my dear."

That was interesting she thought. Why hadn't she struggled? She had more or less just gone with him without giving a second thought to her job, her parents, or for that matter – a suitcase. All she had was her flimsy nightdress and a promise with the Goblin King. Suddenly she felt very exposed. She tried to appear neutral and relaxed about the whole situation; it seemed that very stupidly, she had accidentally given him a great deal of power over her life. She hoped he hadn't realized just how much quite yet.

"You think it's interesting? Maybe your memory's a bit hazy on our last encounter as well. Did I not wish away my brother in a whirl of 'I didn't mean its'? Afterall what's said is said is it not Goblin King?"

She smiled trying to copy his smirk but feeling as if she probably just looked as though she was chewing on something rather sour. His eyebrows raised slightly and he gave her a half smile and cast his eyes to the large window on the left of his throne.

"Quite. So for thirteen weeks, your home will be the Labyrinth and I suppose more specifically this castle."

Sarah watched him absently staring out the window. Gods this was annoying she thought rolling her eyes. Sometimes he looked at her like she was the only thing around for miles and others he acted as though she was barely there at all. She coughed impatiently and his eyes shifted back to her shivering form.

"Right well, in case you hadn't noticed Goblin King, in a fit of my impulsiveness I seem to have neglected to pack a suitcase. So all I really have with me right now is this." She pulled at the bottom of her nightdress to emphasize.

He gave her a twisted smile and then produced a crystal once again by lazily rolling his hand.

"While I do find that garment rather…interesting I must concede your point. There are seamstresses here whom I will employ to create you a suitable wardrobe. In the meantime I can conjure a few pieces for you to wear."

He hopped down of his throne grabbing his riding crop which had been resting against the side of it.

Sarah tried to watch him as he began to circle her tapping his crop on the ground as he walked his brows knitted in concentration.

"Why can't you just conjure me the wardrobe? Why do I need a seamstress? Actually for that point why can't you just conjure me my clothes from home?"

He continued to circle her tapping his crop on the ground.

"Because Sarah magic doesn't work that way. The pieces I conjure will be from the goblin market. They normally have a few dresses pre-prepared so I'll simply summon one of those. I cannot will clothes into existence; they have to be made first. Magic manipulates it does not create something from nothing. As for your clothes from Aboveground, they are hardly suitable for these lands. As I'm sure you've noticed by now we don't exactly dress as you do Above."

At this Sarah snorted in laughter. "You might say that yeah."

The Goblin King raised his left eyebrow but continued talking. "As such, it would be appropriate, since you are a guest in my Kingdom, to dress according to the culture and traditions here. Would you have me if I were visiting Above to be dressed as I am now simply walking through your streets?"

She sighed and rolled her eyes.

"Yes I thought not. Now what would you estimate your measurements to be?"

At this he began to run his crop over her bare shoulder blades. Sarah let out a yelp and swatted his crop away spinning to face him.

"What do you think you're doing?"

She protectively wrapped her arms around her body again eyeing the crop warily. He sighed and shifted his weight beginning to tap the crop against the side of his leg impatiently.

"I need your measurements Sarah. Unless you would rather remain in your night clothes?"

Sarah shifted slightly still staring at the crop.

"Couldn't you just, I don't know, hazard a guess?"

He sighed again hitting the crop more forcefully against his leg now.

"No because I will be adjusting whatever garments I summon to fit you. The measurements need to be precise."

He stepped closer to her pulling her arms down from where they were wrapped around her torso. She shifted her eyes to look up at the ceiling reluctantly letting her arms fall.

"Just…be quick about it then would you?"

She was determined not to look at him but couldn't help but jump a little as he slid a hand over her shoulder and down her arm. She bit her lip and took a deep breath. She was fairly sure now that his gloves were not made of leather, they were much too soft.

"What about the crop?"

 

The left side of his mouth quirked slightly as he began to run his hand along the underside of her arm slowly.

"It's much quicker without the crop. Did you not just ask for me to be quick about it?"

She rolled her eyes still firmly focused on the ceiling. She felt his hand run along her collarbone at her chest each finger lazily taking its time as it slowly made its way across the bone. She let her eyes drift downward slightly watching the intense look of concentration on his face as his left hand followed his right.

She closed her eyes firmly not wanting to look at him at this exact moment. Because, she thought as his hand found her other shoulder smoothly running across it and then inch by inch down her arm, his touch was causing a rippling sensation to rock right through her. If she closed her eyes she reasoned, she could pretend that the fire his fingers left in his wake on her skin were caused by any other man. She chewed on her lip in concentration. She was not here. His hand slowly ran from her right arm over the top of her chest. She was not here and he could be anyone. His other hand worked its way just under her breasts lightly grazing the skin with the tips of his fingertips. She felt as though she'd been standing there for hours each second seeming to take an eternity as his hands drifted across her skin.

His hands were now gradually making their way over her stomach and she breathed out slightly. The worst of it was over for sure. She was about to open her eyes when she felt his hands on each side of her hips. He had knelt down and she could evenly feel the warm sensation of his breath on her lower abdomen as his hands wandered around her body languidly touching her hip bone at all angles. He then made work of her bare legs leisurely letting the tips of his fingers run down her skin. For the third time that night she let out a small shudder.

She opened her eyes to see he was looking up at her now brows raised in interest and what appeared to be amusement.

"It's the cold." She snapped.

It was not the cold.

He smirked at her and then picked his crop up from the floor.

"For the inseam Sarah I think it might be in better taste if I were to use the crop."

She nodded her head in agreement and then quickly closed her eyes again.

The crop was much rougher than his gloves and it slowly made its way up her thigh. Her skin felt like it was on fire now and she felt the crop run itself up and down the inside of her right thigh repeatedly stopping just short of the one place she really shouldn't want it to go. Shouldn't want. She said it over and over in her mind like an affirmation as the crop switched thighs making the same, and there was no doubt about it in Sarah's mind now, sensual movements as before. She wondered how he could do this without even touching her and had a faint suspicion a touch of magic might be involved. Although short of admitting that she was having decidedly unsafe thoughts at the moment, there was no way to go about accusing his Goblin Highness of this.

Then just like that the crop was gone and the Goblin King was a couple steps back twirling a crystal absently in his hand like he hadn't moments ago been gliding a riding crop up her thigh. Sarah let out a deep breath and ran her hands along her arms trying to rid herself of the goosebumps that had appeared there. It was over. That was done and nothing ever happened here. He snapped his hand shut and the crystal vanished bringing his eyes back up to hers.

"There, your clothes should be waiting for you in your chambers."

Sarah stared blankly for a moment before remembering that his needing to take her "measurements" was the cause of that little free-for-all with her skin. She smiled in what she hoped was an easy way.

"Oh good…um my chambers?"

She was still fighting to regain her voice a bit, the fire he had lit on her skin refusing to be extinguished by something as small as lack of touch.

"Yes. As it is quite late and as I have already been called out of my castle once for the evening I believe I shall be retiring to my chambers. I suggest you do the same. Any further questions and details pertaining to your stay can be addressed in the morning."

He stepped around her and began to walk down the long corridor out of the throne room.

"Hey wait a minute!" She chased after him. "Goblin King!"

She ran to stand in front of him. He peered down at her amused.

"Yes is there something I can help you with?"

"Well…yes!" She flopped her arms down at her sides frustrated. "I don't exactly know where my chambers are do I?"

He smirked at her.

"I wouldn't worry about that. You'll find your way eventually."

Then before she could blink he was gone leaving nothing but small flecks of what appeared to be glitter in his wake.

"Well that's just great." She spoke aloud just in case he could still hear her. "I could be wandering the castle all night!" He runs his hands all over her and then leaves her to fend for herself. She really shouldn't be surprised.

She began to walk down the corridor sighing to herself every few steps. There were no doors, no turns not even a window. He really does like his long corridors, she thought to herself. The hallway was dark and she nearly would have missed it if the handle of the door hadn't glinted slightly in the light from the torches that lined the wall. She opened the large wooden door and found herself standing in front of a spiral staircase. She raised her brows slightly. This was all very medieval. She began to climb the stairs until she reached the top where there was a surprisingly large door for such a small landing. She pushed it open hesitantly. Sarah let out a small gasp. She couldn't help herself. Inside was easily the most beautiful room she had ever seen decorated exactly how she had always imagined the old historical castles must have been.

The shape of the room was round due to her being at the top of the tower but the, there was no other word for it, suite, was so large that it didn't feel the slightest bit claustrophobic. There was a large four poster bed in the middle of the room and under it was an ornate rug with rich warm colours woven through it. There was a stone fireplace burning brightly across from the bed but the room was so large Sarah guessed the distance between the two would easily equal the width of her own bedroom back home. There was a dresser with a large vanity to the left of the bed and on top of it laid a hairbrush and what looked like a jewelry box. The wardrobe was to the right and Sarah could see from the small open crack that there were indeed clothes inside. Next to the wardrobe was another wooden door which was currently closed. The windows were very distinctly medieval with their arched crowns and the red velvet curtains were pulled to the side allowing the moonlight to stream through.

She walked over to the other side of the room deciding to take a peek inside the wardrobe to examine the clothes that he needed such thorough measurements for. She wasn't surprised to find a distinct lack of jeans or for that matter any pairs of pants. What she did find were a handful of airy neutral coloured blouses paired next to a couple of long skirts in rich colours. She fingered the fabric lightly. There were no synthetic fibres here. There was a corset hanging inside the door along with two wide leather belts. The pair of shoes that had been laid out were high dark coloured boots with laces. The items were very plain in nature and she felt a little cheated. Old castles and kingdoms went hand in hand with beautiful, ornate dresses. Then she remembered a seamstress was supposed to be coming to fit her with a more permanent wardrobe. Perhaps she could talk to them about a few more interesting items. She briefly recalled another dress, white, sparkly and about as over the top as you could get. She smiled slightly to herself. She'd like to think her tastes had refined and changed somewhat since her last foray into the world of Underground fashion.

She shut the door to the wardrobe and decided to investigate what kind of plumbing an old other-worldly castle might even have. She was picturing a wooden outhouse style room and was pleasantly surprised to see that it was about as modern as she could have hoped for. Everything was done up in bronze and copper but she decided that against the stone walls, porcelain would look foolish. There was a large claw footed bath in the centre of the room with pipes that didn't seem to attach to anywhere. Curious she turned on the tap to see if anything would even happen and was pleased at the clear stream of hot water that poured through.

She pulled the door of the washroom closed and wandered back over to her bed and climbed under the covers. She was exhausted, both from the inter-world travel and the fact that it must have been at least 3am back home. She noticed there were no clocks in her room and wondered briefly if she would consider that a bad thing. Afterall they would all have thirteen hours on them anyways and she had no concept of the speed at which time moved in the Underground. She turned to face the window and from her bed, even while lying down, she could see almost the entire Labyrinth. If it was possible, it looked even larger and much vaster now than when she had traversed it some thirteen years prior. She looked up at the moon which was a few weeks from being full just yet. She wondered if the Underground had its own moon and its own sun separate from her home. She tried to remember what stage the moon was in back Aboveground but found her mind falling into sleep. She would have to remember to ask tomorrow.


	4. Chapter 4

The Goblin King did not go to his chambers despite the late hour. Instead he transported himself to his study where upon arrival he began pulling several books from the shelf behind his desk. He stared at them piled atop of each other and let out a deep sigh. It was going to be, unfortunately, a rather long night. Although he suspected as much when he felt her pull to him and very nearly drag him to her home. Well, it was only a matter of time wasn't it? He was just going to have to increase the research now. He let out another sigh as he realized that this would probably be the first of many late nights.

He ran his gloved hand over the large black cover of the first book. As he touched it a golden scrawl began appeared. An old reference text that had to many, lost its value several centuries ago. Right now however it was his best option. He wearily sat down and pulled a pair of wire rimmed glasses out of the air opening the book to the first chapter.

Sarah had no idea how long she'd slept only that it had been one of the best rests she had in a long time. She slowly opened her eyes to feel the sunlight warming her face. She rolled over onto her back and smiled stretching her arms and legs out to take advantage of the spacious bed. She let out a deep sigh.

"Ahh I could just stay like this all day."

"Well you practically have already."

The unexpected voice caused Sarah to bolt upright in bed suddenly very awake. This was now the second time in less than twenty-four hours this had happened to her. She was really going to have to either get used to strangers startling her in her room or invest in a very strong, magic proof lock.

Sarah looked around for the owner of the voice but to her eyes her room appeared empty. She lowered her covers a bit.

"Um Hello?"

"Down here!"

Sarah crawled over to look over the side of her bed. She didn't see anything.

"Down where?" Sarah stuck her head further over the side of the bed very nearly toppling off in the process.

"In your dresser of course!" The voice intoned from across the room.

Sarah pulled herself upright and then turned her head towards her dresser and noticed the very small purple worm sitting at the bottom of said dresser.

"Oh! I'm sorry."

Sarah climbed out of bed and walked over to where the worm was perched atop her left boot inside the dresser. She knelt down so she was more at eye level with it.

"May I ask what you're doing in my dresser?"

"Well I'm figuring out what clothes you'll be needin' ain't I?"

"Clothes?" Sarah replied dimly.

"Yes of course! These won't last thirteen weeks will they. Never the mind you've only got the one pair o'shoes, that'll never do. Then I've got to get started on some more formal wear."

Sarah held up her hand haltingly. "Wait slow down what formal wear?" She was still trying to process what the worm was saying as she'd barely been awake five minutes.

"You know ball gowns and them fancy garments." The worm tsked at her impatiently. "You can't very well be attending any events in clothes from the goblin market of all places! No no, I should have them all ready for next week not to worry not to worry."

Sarah narrowed her eyes in confusion recognition dawning on her. "Wait, are you the seamstress?"

"Well o'course I am!" The worm replied brightly.

"But…you're just a worm!" Sarah laughed looking at the tiny creature that appeared small even on the toe of her shoe.

"No I ain't!" The worm replied indignantly. "I'm a silk worm!"

Sarah smiled. "Ah I should have known."

The worm nodded. "Now I've got your measurements from the king so won't be needin' those. Dark hair, pretty girl like you, I know just what to spin for you." The worm began to crawl down from the dresser to the floor.

"Oh that's wonderful thank you." Sarah bit her lip hesitating. "Um can I just ask…no white overly fluffy gowns please? I've kind of been put off them."

"O'course, O'course!" The worm was now nestled at a crack in the wall behind her dresser. "Must be off now, the mister will be wanting his lunch and tea. I'll introduce you sometime."

Sarah smiled slightly at the memory. "You know I think we might have already met."

The worm laughed and vanished through the crack.

Sarah pulled herself up and walked over to the window. Getting closer she noticed that the window didn't actually have any glass on it and was more just a well shaped hole in her wall. She rolled her eyes. That was going to get old real fast in thunderstorms. She tried to hazard a guess at the time given the sun's location in the sky. The worm had said lunch which told her it was probably past noon. She could not remember the last time she had slept this late but she credited it to inter-realm or dimensional travel. She wasn't sure which the Labyrinth was. She just knew she was pretty sure she wasn't on the Earth as she knew it. She let out a deep sigh and began to drum her fingers on the windowsill absently. Something was bothering her but she couldn't quite put her finger on what it was. She hated that feeling, like the perpetual wondering whether or not she left the oven on and chuckled in spite of herself. Well if she had left the oven on her apartment was doomed.

Her brows knitted together in concern. Actually that was one thing bothering her, just how  _un_ bothered she was by the entire situation. Here she was standing at a hole in the wall in her bedroom of an old otherworldly castle and laughing about the possibility of her apartment burning down. She'd slept past noon, she didn't care that she should have been at work this morning, it didn't bother her that the first thing she did when she woke up was have a conversation with her seamstress the worm and most troubling was how very little it did trouble her that she agreed to this without giving it more than a minute's worth of thought. In fact, she still didn't care about the rashness of her decision. Jareth had been right, she didn't have any doubt in her mind which was more than a little bit bizarre.

Jareth…that was the other thing. His name. Why was she so focused on trying to remember him last night? It was after all what inevitably called him to her. For that she didn't know if she was grateful yet. Thirteen weeks of her life she'd promised him. She bit the inside of her cheek feeling a pang in the pit of her stomach. Pleased or not whether she was to be on this – temporary - vacation something was obviously very wrong here.

She thought back to the night before. He'd been relatively helpful all things considered. He'd even let the fact that she'd spit in his face go which really didn't seem like the Goblin King she now remembered. Not to mention he knew too much. He knew just which thread to pull to lead her back down here. But it was more than that, he seemed to know she'd come willingly. Why was that? She wondered and pulled her hair running it between her thumb and forefinger. He was her adversary. That was the role that had been established and now, to her at least, this incarnation seemed almost a paradox of his previous self. He was relatively helpful if not somewhat cruel and manipulative. He was generous that much was clear just from looking around her castle suite. He was, and she shuddered again at the thought, maddeningly temptuous. She wasn't afraid of him anymore. Perhaps that came with beating the Labyrinth as a reward to the victor. The lack of fear over the monarch thereby giving them no power over you. Then there was something else, something that was swimming in her mind from the previous evening but that she couldn't quite recall. She sighed and shook her head trying to rid herself of thoughts that really didn't have answers at this point. She remembered that he said he would address her questions today, hopefully he'd remain true to his word. For now however, she had friends to find and they'd certainly already waited long enough.

She quickly bathed and dressed in one of the simple skirts and blouses that had been left in her closet. She had no interest in forcing herself into the corset so she left it hanging on the door to the dresser and then, quick as she could, ran down the stairs. It was only when she reached the bottom that she remembered she had no idea where anything in the castle was. She had been hoping to grab some food out of the kitchen as a peace offering to her friends for delaying so long in contacting them but she doubted she could even find her way back to the throne room from here.

She tapped her foot thinking. "God doesn't this castle have a map somewhere?" She muttered out loud. She shrugged her shoulders and went left down the corridor. "Ah well nothing for it."

She walked down the left corridor for what must have been half an hour. She was starving and the hallway showed no sign of ending. Now she was getting frustrated. At least there were windows so she could see better than she could last night but this long unending corridor thing was getting ridiculous. She walked for another five minutes before finally giving up and kicking the wall a couple of times in frustration. She leaned back on the other side and let her head bang softly against the stone. Except it wasn't stone behind her, it was wood. Sarah turned around in confusion. She was certain that it had been stone just a moment ago but oh well a door's a door and she was just at this point grateful to get out of the hallway. She made to grab for the door knob before she noticed there wasn't one. She tried just pushing on the wood but it wouldn't budge. Sarah let out a cry of frustration.

"You know what I've had just about enough of this for one day! The only door in this damn hallway for ages and it doesn't even have a handle!"

Sarah began kicking the door and letting out a few choice swears for good measure when suddenly the door vanished leaving a very tired very annoyed looking Jareth standing in its place. Sarah was so startled by the door's sudden disappearance and the Goblin Monarch's sudden appearance that she stumbled over her kicking feet into a heap on the ground.

"Ouch." She groaned before looking sourly up at him.

His annoyance vanished to be replaced with a smirk standing over her.

"I could say the same thing. You kicked me in the shin before realizing I was there."

Now it was Sarah's turn to smirk.

"No I knew you were there."

Jareth rolled his eyes but was clearly amused. He extended his hand to her and she reluctantly took it pulling herself up. Jareth leaned casually against the doorframe.

"Now dare I ask what prompted you to start pounding and shouting at my study door like the hounds of hell were on your heels?"

Sarah threw up her arms in renewed frustration.

"There are no doors in this place! Only hallways that go on forever! Then I finally do find a door and there isn't even a handle to open it with! I have been walking for half an hour!" She pounded her fist against the wall for good measure.

Jareth let out a low chuckle and looked up at her grinning.

"Half an hour you say?" He stepped out of the doorway and walked down the hallway a few feet. "You know I expected better from the Labyrinth's champion." At this he touched the wall and a large wooden door appeared.

Sarah rolled her eyes and crossed her arms in front of her chest.

"Well that's hardly fair, you can do magic!"

He smirked at her arching his left eyebrow expectantly.

"Oh? Is that it? Look closer Sarah."

Sarah tapped her foot and looked around the hallway. It still appeared solid stone with no doorways anywhere.

"I don't see anything," she sighed in annoyance.

Now it was his turn to roll his eyes.

"I assure you it is full of doors. You're just not seeing them. Reach out your hand to the stone."

Sarah reluctantly complied brushing the tips of her fingers over the stone walls. Suddenly she was no longer touching stone but wood. She noticed that this door at least had a handle. Sarah narrowed her eyes at the newly appeared door.

"How come I didn't see them?" Sarah whispered softly.

Jareth had walked back over to stand beside her.

"Expectations Sarah. You projected what you knew of the Labyrinth onto the castle. I assure you my castle does not normally have passages that continue in a straight line for half an hour. Expect to see a door and you will see a door. Although it appears you still have to physically feel the door for it to appear. That should stop being the case now that you know the doors are there."

Sarah turned to face him.

"So you're telling me that because I expected to see a long passage similar to the outer level of the Labyrinth that your castle re-arranged itself to accommodate it?"

Jareth gave a toothy grin in response.

"So wait does that mean the entire castle is different to me than to anyone else? Like the kitchen for example. Where's the kitchen to you Jareth?"

Jareth simply shrugged his shoulders and began to walk back into his study.

"You're still trying to get the castle to live up to your expectations. Wherever you expect the kitchen to be that's where it will be. Focus on it and it will appear."

Jareth waved a hand from behind him and the door reappeared shutting him inside the study.

"What?"

Sarah ran forward and resumed pounding on the study's door.

"Goblin King, get your royal behind out here!"

Once again the door vanished but this time Sarah was a little more prepared for the wooden disappearing act and was able to stay on her feet. Jareth looked however appeared deeply annoyed now but Sarah didn't rightly care. She was starving and now faintly sweaty from repeatedly beating his door.

"Can I help you?" The Goblin King drawled maintaining an air of superior pride despite his frustrations. "This may have escaped your notice Sarah, but I am rather busy at the moment."

Sarah looked past him into the study. She noticed stacks of books and paper piled atop the long desk by the window. Jareth began drumming his fingers on the doorframe.

"Well this door doesn't have a handle. I wasn't able to get into it. How am I supposed to get into the kitchens if the doors here don't have a handle? I can't just magic them here and there like you can."

Sarah began tapping her foot to match his finger drumming. Jareth rolled his eyes dramatically.

"Sarah this is my personal study. Rooms that are my private quarters or rooms that are exceedingly dangerous are the only ones that are accessible only by magic. That way no goblins wander in accidentally and decide that their new favourite hobby is seeing all the different places they can pee in one room. The kitchen is a common area so you should have no trouble entering it." He paused and gave a small smirk. "Or exiting it for that matter. Now if you don't mind."

He was about to re-create the door but Sarah was onto him. She ran into the room before he could do anything and the door appeared behind her. She noticed that indeed there was no door knob on this side either. Jareth for his part was too busy being royally ticked.

"Sarah I've had just about enough of this. Now I have told you how to access the kitchens and I have a kingdom to run. I don't have time for these self-indulgent antics."

Sarah scoffed. "Yeah well I could say the same thing vanishing doors left and right without letting me get a word in edgewise. But you promised me answers to my questions. Today."

Jareth chose to ignore her and sat down behind his desk instead and began writing. Sarah puffed out a sigh before wandering over and grabbing the topmost book from the pile. It was clearly written in a language she didn't read or even recognize. She crossed over to stand behind Jareth's shoulder trying to read what he was writing. She noticed that it was still clearly a language she didn't read but it was definitely different and looked much less complicated than the one the book was written in. Jareth had stopped writing and threw his quill down on the parchment and turned in his chair to face Sarah.

"That is truly an appalling habit reading over someone's shoulder."

Sarah huffed "It's not like it's a language I read."

"That does not make the habit less appalling."

Jareth stood up and walked over to the door making it vanish for the umpteenth time that afternoon. Sarah simply crossed her arms and kept her feet planted.

"Nope not going anywhere. You said I could have answers and I want answers."

Jareth peaked his left brow.

"Sarah how old are you?"

"Twenty-eight." Sarah answered confused.

"Really well I was under the impression you were no more than five given the way you are behaving."

Sarah threw her arms up in the air she crossed the room to stand in front of him glaring.

"Oh that's rich coming from you of all people."

"I'm not the one impeding the government here!" Jareth spat back.

"You dragged me from my home in the middle of the night sent me to bed with barely any explanation of just what exactly I've gotten myself into and tell me I can have answers tomorrow. Well I'm not leaving until I get some!"

Jareth crossed his arms in front of his chest. "Technically I believe I said this morning Sarah. It is now long past and your offer for answers has expired."

She began to audibly protest but he held up a hand to stop her.

"However, I am willing to reconsider in an hour. In the meantime I suggest you have some lunch and then return here where I will meet with you."

Sarah felt her stomach growl in agreement. It would probably be best to eat before getting into what was sure to be a long discussion anyways.

"Fine." Sarah sighed, she hated giving in to him so easily. "But one hour and no more! I would still like to be able to find my friends today."

Jareth rolled his eyes at the mention of her friends but nodded in agreement. "An hour Sarah."

She stepped out of the room and saw the door back in place. She turned to her left to notice where there once was only corridor there were now turns and doors. Sarah shrugged and closed her eyes trying to imagine the kitchen appearing in front of her. She scrunched up her face trying to visualize it best she could. When she opened them however all she saw was blank wall. She sighed.

"Well so much for just willing it to appear."

She was going to have to find it the old fashioned way but at least this time she had more than just a long empty corridor to go with. Sarah made a right at the first turn and began to smell something cooking. Smiling she realized she was on the right track. She was slightly concerned that the kitchen might have been on the opposite side of the castle. She started walking towards the smell but as she got closer she realized it wasn't so much cooking as it was burning. She raced to the largest door in the hallway and noticed smoke billowing out from under it.

Sarah wrenched open the door to find what she imagined was the kitchen covered in flames and about eight goblins running around like chickens with their heads cut off. Some of them were jumping in and out of the fire cackling with glee while others were simply piling more items onto the burning masses.

Sarah coughed from the smoke covering her mouth with her sleeve.

"Just what do you think you're doing!" Sarah managed to choke out from behind her sleeve.

As soon as she spoke all the goblins froze like time had stopped. They all slowly turned to look at her and then let out a collective shriek. They began running and ducking to hide in various places. Throwing pots and pans everywhere and a few of them tried to hide in the flames.

"Hey wait!" Sarah called stepping hesitantly into the burning kitchen. She managed to grab on by its tail before it tried to crawl into the oven. The goblin looked up at her with petrified eyes wriggly and writhing in her grasp. Sarah pulled it to eye level with her, one arm still covering her mouth from the smoke.

"What in the world is going on here and why is everyone running?" Sarah asked the goblin from behind her sleeve.

The goblin closed its eyes and began talking very fast. "We was just playin' with the fire cause Grochy mades it and thens we sees the more things we put in it the bigger it got and the mores pretty and then it starts gettin' all smoke-y so then we was just playin' with the smokes and the fires and then you comes in here and please don't throw me ins the bog it wasn't my idea I swears it."

Sarah lowered the goblin confused.

"Throw you in the bog? Why would I throw you in the bog?" She asked questioningly.

The goblin opened its eyes slightly.

"You won'ts?"

Sarah shook her head and began to cough. The goblin pointed to the kitchen door.

"Yous best goes out there. Its less smoke-y."

Sarah coughed again and carried the Goblin out into the hall where she pulled the door closed taking deep breathes of the clean air.

"But what about the kitchen and the other goblins?" Sarah managed to choke out in between breaths.

The goblin which she was still holding by its tail just laughed.

"Naw theys fine. Fire no hurt us. Just tickle. Iz funs. King know. King makes kitchen fire proof. Fire go away now that the goblins go away. Go back in. Fire no there anymore."

Sarah raised her eyebrows at this and sceptically opened the door slightly. The goblin was right, the kitchen was spotless and there wasn't anything to suggest that it had been ablaze only minutes before. She let out a slow whistle.

"Okay." She said smiling at the suspended goblin. "That, is an impressive trick."

The goblin smiled back toothily or it would have if there had been any teeth in its mouth to smile with. Sarah's grin turned into more of a grimace at that but she was just so pleased that she was no longer choking to death and the castle wasn't going to go down in a ball of flames that she didn't much care about the goblin's lack of dental appendages.

She slowly lowered the goblin to the floor standing it upright. She straightened the metal tin it wore on its head with a smile. She extended her hand towards it.

"Okay now that we've settled that and you know that I have no desire to bog you let's try some pleasantries shall we? My name's Sarah."

The goblin gave another toothless grin and then licked her palm which Sarah withdrew quickly in horror.

"Lickered!"

Sarah began frantically rubbing her hand over her skirt.

"Ugh why would you do that?" Sarah asked with disgust.

The goblin looked crestfallen.

"Was just introducin' meself."

Sarah sighed and bent down so she was more on the goblin's level.

"I'm sorry it's just where I come from people don't get 'lickered' by way of introductions."

The goblin looked up at her for she was still quite a bit larger than it even crouching.

"No my name be Lickered. Thats how I meets peoples."

Sarah laughed and patted Lickered on the head.

"I'm sorry Lickered. But now that you've licked me sufficiently you won't be needing to do that again right?"

Lickered nodded happily.

Sarah pulled herself up to full height and looked around the blessingly flame free kitchen. She turned to Lickered a smile on her face.

"Alright Lickered, how would you like some lunch?"

Lickered shrieked with joy in response and darted into the first cupboard to come running back brandishing a frying pan and waving it back and forth shouting for lunch. Sarah laughed and evenly walked over and plucked the frying pan from Lickered's hands placing it atop the stove.

She managed from the food products that she found, and recognized, to make a delicious couple of grilled cheese sandwiches for her and Lickered with some veggies on the side. While Sarah was cooking Lickered entertained her by telling her of the goblin goings on in the Labyrinth and the Goblin City. According to Lickered the goblins were free to come and go from the castle as they pleased. There were rooms that were off limits of course, but they knew well enough not to break into them. The goblins mostly preferred however to have homes in the city and come to the castle as a meeting place or for celebrations and to discuss matters with the king. Only a few goblins spent most of their time in the castle. Lickered was one of them. He told Sarah he was waiting until he could make his fortune as a stone seller in the market to get his own home. He spent his day collecting broken pieces of the castle and rocks around the Labyrinth. Sarah inquired as to the purpose of these stones and Lickered replied that they contained magic. Magic, he explained, was valuable in any form especially to those species that do not possess the power to wield it. Goblins, were one of those groups. Although Lickered offered, they were nearly indestructible, and certainly fireproof Sarah intoned, they did not have the power to control magic. The stones were sometimes used as fortune telling runes among the goblins and were used to see the past, understand the present and predict the future.

Sarah found herself very interested in what Lickered had to say as before she had never really given much thought to the goblins that the Goblin King must have authority over. She'd also never really considered the Goblin City which was the main metropolis of the Goblin Kingdom. Lickered was fairly patient considering her was a goblin and was happy to explain a number of things that Sarah didn't understand.

When she was finished she realized she'd easily passed the hour dealing with flaming kitchens and talking with Lickered. Before she left to find the Goblin King again she turned to Lickered who at this point was 'cleaning' the plates by licking them (Sarah made a mental note at this to always wash dishes before she used them now), and asked him something that'd been bothering her since she'd spoken to the Goblin King earlier.

"Lickered" Lickered turned and Sarah hesitated slightly. She didn't know how deep the goblin's loyalties lied. "Is the Goblin King...a good king?"

Lickered looked at her questioningly. "Is he good king?"

Sarah nodded. Lickered paused for a minute seeming to consider his answer.

"He good king."

Sarah waited for Lickered to expand on this but he resumed licking the plates. Sarah's mouth twitched slightly. "Choose your right words." She thought to herself.

"Lickered" She started again. "What I mean is, what makes him a good king?"

Lickered smiled at her. "He make kitchen fireproof. He let us play. We listen, he listen. He keep goblin market good. No let others come in and break us. He bog when bad. He bog when mad." Lickered paused and thought for a moment. "He bog lots. But good king."

Sarah raised her eyebrows with a smile. "He bogs you a lot huh?"

Lickered shook his head. "Not just king. Any fae can. No bog me in fifty years!" Lickered puffed out his chest proudly.

Sarah lifted herself from her seat at the table and pushed her plate towards Lickered to lick.

"Well as long as you're happy I suppose."

Lickered nodded his head enthusiastically between licks. Sarah told him she would try and find him later and they could continue talking. Lickered happily agreed and then ran out of sight. Sarah made her way out of the kitchen and back towards the Goblin King's study.


	5. Chapter 5

It took Sarah a few minutes to adequately retrace her steps back to the Goblin King's study. Since she'd ran most of the way to the kitchen after smelling the smoke, she'd somewhat lost track of where she was though she knew she hadn't gone too far. A couple of turns and some bits of wall masquerading as a door later she was knocking on the door to the study. The door disappeared and Sarah walked in finding the Goblin King, boots on the desk idly flipping through a book. Sarah noticed that the large pile of books and papers that had previously occupied most of the space on the desk was gone. The Goblin King waved a hand and the door reappeared sealing them in.

Sarah slowly made her way over to one of the large armchairs in the corner and pulled it over to sit in front of the desk. She couldn't help feeling like she was being summoned to the principal or dean's office having him sit on the other side of the desk like that.

"Given the smell of smoke that is clinging to your clothes and hair, I trust you managed to find the kitchens." The Goblin King hadn't looked up from his book but Sarah knew he was giving her one of his superior smirks.

"It was on fire." She replied dryly.

"Yes it does tend to do that." He replied idly turning the page.

Given that he hadn't looked up from his book to address her, Sarah decided to give him a minute to finish whatever he was reading. She understood how she hated being interrupted when she was in the middle of reading something important and figured for now she would grant him this courtesy. She looked around the room and got the sense that unlike the throne room, this room was distinctly Jareth's.

It was dressed in a style similar to her own although it was much darker. The wood, the colour of the upholstery, everything. The room had a large ceiling whereupon there was a painting depicting a section of the Labyrinth. The stone maze Sarah recognized. There were a couple of window seats designed to lounge in and an ornate carpet covered the room. There were bookshelves lined with a number of books stacked both horizontally and vertically. The books themselves were varying in size somewhat but for the most part seemed rather large and old. Sarah got up out of her chair to inspect them. She ran her fingers over the spine of one slightly and noticed that she had brushed away some dust to reveal a gold text. She couldn't read what the text said, it was in an unfamiliar language (Sarah suspected the same one from the book before), but all the same she reached to open it. A hand lightly grabbed her wrist. Jareth was now standing scant inches from her curiously observing the bookshelf.

"I wouldn't bother if I were you. These books are in a language that has been dead to you for many years."

Sarah withdrew her hand and he released her wrist. He was now running his finger over the same text and Sarah noticed the writing on the spine disappeared. She turned to face him slightly.

"What are all these books?" Sarah enquired quietly. She stared hungrily at the stacks of them just itching to be read.

Jareth saw the look in her eye and smiled. "These books are my private collection. Rare texts, old reference books, books supposed to be lost." At this his grin widened and he pulled a book from the shelf to his right reaching his arm across Sarah's chest to do so. He handed her the book. Sarah took it and opened it gingerly. The writing on the page was indeed in a language she didn't read but judging from the way the pages turned the book had to be a couple of centuries old.

"Roughly eight hundred years old." Jareth replied as if reading her thoughts. "That particular text was stolen from your world a couple thousand years ago and rebound after it was decided that scrolls were far too delicate." Sarah turned the page with awe.

"But the language," Sarah ran her fingers over the script. "It's not an above one I recognize."

Jareth leaned in and pointed to one of the symbols on the page with a gloved hand.

 

"That," he said "is the symbol for return. It is probably a language closest to your ancient Egyptian with influences from Roman Latin."

Sarah looked at him doubtfully.

"Ancient Egyptian and Latin are two separate languages." She pointed out.

Jareth shook his head.

"I said it was close not exact. This text is very important and very old. It was initially code locked and the literate creatures of the Underground translated it to make it somewhat more accessible. Unfortunately the translation into an Underground language didn't carry over the meaning effectively so in order to preserve what was written, an amalgamation of language was created in order to properly understand the true meaning behind the text."

 

Sarah shook her head staring down the symbol that supposedly meant "return".

 

"I don't understand, why not just leave it in the original code then? Also what do you mean when you say the meaning was lost? What language was it in?" Sarah asked.

"Words and their meanings have always been of the utmost importance in the Underground. Everything must be said or written with great care otherwise one could easily find themselves in an unfavourable situation. Take the word "home" in your English language. It literally means the place where one lives. That is what the word would come out as in most translations. What cannot be properly conveyed is how a home denotes a place where one feels safe and at peace."

Sarah lifted her eyes from the book. "I understand that. I'm an editor Jareth; I spend most of my life examining people's choice of words. But then why not just study the original language instead?"

Jareth paused considering how best to approach the next question. "We could not leave it in the original language because then the text would have been lost to us. The text was initially code locked to all otherworldly creatures. None in the Underground would ever been able to read it."

"Why's that?" Sarah interrupted.

Jareth reached and pulled the book from her hands snapping it closed.

"Because it is about us. It was written by a very wise, very powerful man who was mortal but had his own brand of magic."

Sarah raised her eyebrows questioning.

"What kind of magic?"

Jareth gave a feral smile and then leaned in towards her barely raising his voice above a whisper.

"Banishment. Guardianship. Immortality."

Jareth withdrew.

"But immortality does not mean the same thing in mortal years as it does in the fae. You can stop yourself from giving into death but you cannot stop yourself from dying."

Jareth went to sit back down behind his desk throwing his boots back up on top of it.

"But that my dear is a story for another day. Suffice to say when he was disposed of, we gained control of the text and it was translated into the version you see now." His tone was lighter now and he gestured for her to sit down in the chair she had pulled over.

Sarah hesitantly made her way over her eyes still focused on the book. What was written that was so important to guard like that?

"Now," He opened his arms with a grin. "I believe you had some questions for me Ms. Williams."

Sarah allowed herself to forget about the book temporarily and get back to the task at hand and matters that concerned her own life.

She plunked herself down in the chair and raised her own shoes onto the desk to match his. He arched his eyebrow a smile tugging at his lips and she raised hers back inclining her head towards him. He let it go.

"I have a number of questions for you Goblin King but first I'd like to establish some ground rules."

Jareth produced a crystal from the air and began waving it back and forth.

"Excellent as I had the same intent."

He tossed the crystal to his right index finger where it began rotating.

"As I am being ever the generous servant to your whim Sarah," The Goblin King allowed the crystal to roll off his finger over his knuckles. "I would ask that you grant me that same generosity Sarah."

Sarah watched the crystal move evenly from one hand to the next.

"I don't understand? You want to ask me questions?" Sarah replied keeping one eye on the crystal.

Jareth gave her a pointed grin in response. "Not as such. Instead I have only one question for your infinite I'm sure."

Sarah paused for a moment considering. What sort of question would he be asking? She finally shrugged her shoulders. It wasn't like there was anything about her life she was trying to hide. If he wanted to hear about her job as a junior editor and love of pasta primavera on Wednesday nights in exchange for the multiple questions burning at the back of her mind than she would oblige.

"Sure, okay that sounds fair. But," Sarah held up a finger reproachfully. "On one condition – you answer all of my questions and with complete honesty at that."

Jareth snapped his fingers and the crystal vanished. He pulled his boots down from the desk and leaned in towards Sarah.

"No." He breathed softly.

"No?" Sarah crossed her arms.

"No." He confirmed leaning back into his chair. "As you may have noticed I am a king here. There are a number of items I am not at liberty to discuss with anyone. Providing you with total access to myself and then letting you loose in my kingdom would be extremely foolish not to mention dangerous of me."

"Well what if I promise not to ask you anything that could jeopardize your authority?" Sarah inquired.

Jareth smiled slightly. "You have no manner of which to know the things that would jeopardize my authority. You may ask any question you wish. I am at liberty to answer how I please."

Sarah huffed and slouched back in her seat. "Well that's not good enough. I've given you access to me. Can't you just refuse to answer the questions you deem threatening to your kingdom?"

"No. That would be an answer in and of itself. My refusal to elaborate already gives you information that it is a dangerous subject. I will answer every question Sarah and I do promise not to lie to you. I will however not agree to withhold information or mislead you slightly."

Sarah rolled her eyes and crossed her arms in front of her chest. "Typical." She let out a deep sigh resigned. "That's the best I'm going to get isn't it?" Jareth shrugged unapologetically. "I guess I can live with that." She begrudgingly admitted. Answers she had to decipher were better than no answers at all. "But you have to give me your word that you won't outright lie to me or mislead me just for the sport off it."

Jareth's eyebrows rose ever so slightly. "You have it." He responded seriously. Sarah knew from experience here words were binding. She didn't doubt him. He gave an elaborate roll of the wrist towards her indicating she may proceed. Sarah made an effort to displace her lingering frustration. Being rude wasn't going to get her anywhere and she needed information.

She ran her fingers through her hair absently. "Okay let's start with the obvious then. Why am I here?"

Jareth seemed somewhat surprised at her choice in opening question. "Come Sarah, you know that much."

 

Sarah shook her head. "No I'm not talking about the wishing and the agreeing and the crystal ball trick you did. I'm talking about why you offered me the chance to come here. What did you have to gain by bringing me back to the Underground? Why am I here Jareth?"

He noticed it was the first time she had used his name after being so desperate to remember it. He let out a small sigh. He was also hoping that the first question would not be one that was so complicated to answer. He did not know for certain yet and he had promised he would not lie to her directly. If he told her his suspicions and they turned out to be incorrect, although he very much doubted this, then it would be as good as lying to her. He would tell her just enough.

He stood up and began to walk across the room where he moved to stand at the window.

"I suppose I would have to credit it to the twin devils of curiosity and boredom."

"Curiosity over what?" Sarah inquired still in her seat his back to her at the window.

"It all comes back to the peach as I told you yesterday. It was supposed to trap you in the Labyrinth permanently. Fruit I've noticed is a most appealing temptation to young women." He turned and gave her a feral grin. "Apples, pomegranates or peach. It is not a new trick to imprison the fair maiden keeping her trapped in a dream world. You shattered your fantasy for the sake of your brother but the fantasy was my gift you see. I didn't need that to trap you."

 

He produced another crystal out of the air and allowed the light from the window to catch it casting light beams all around the room.

"It wasn't my fantasy Jareth." Sarah spoke softly looking down at her apparently now terribly interesting hands. "It was yours."

Jareth tossed the crystal towards her and luckily Sarah was quick enough to catch it before it shattered.

"I assure you that it was a fantasy all your own. The spell is to take your dreams and re-order them. Give them life. Everything in that ballroom already existed in your head. I myself wasn't even aware of the dream until sometime afterwards."

She had no plans to talk about the ballroom but somehow she knew it had to come up. Although something about what he said irked her. "What do you mean when you say you weren't aware of the dream? You um" she stared intently into the crystal deliberately avoiding his gaze. "You were kind of there."

Jareth raised his eyebrows but made no move to leave the windowsill. "No I was not Sarah. The version of me you found in the crystal dream was merely an apparition. Last time I checked I did not have blue streaks running through my hair."

Sarah felt the colour rise to her cheeks. "So the entire ballroom…it was all in my head?"

Jareth paused considering his answer.

"Yes."

Keeping to his word he did not lie.

Sarah let out a small sigh.

Jareth leaned against the window watching her toy with the crystal in her hands.

"Do you like it?" He asked after giving her a moment to collect her thoughts.

Sarah looked up surprised. "What the crystal?"

Jareth nodded.

"It's…yes. I do. They're surprisingly light aren't they? I expected them to be heavy."

Jareth smiled. "They aren't filled with glass like your versions back home."

Sarah rolled it around in her palm. "What are they filled with then?"

Jareth shrugged. "Depends on the crystal and the one wielding it. That one there is empty. Just a vessel. It can be used for scrying or to hold a spell. The ones I offered you the last time held dreams."

Sarah peered into it trying to see if she could see anything in the polished surface. "Is this where fortune tellers got the crystal ball idea? Can all you otherworldly creatures do this?"

Jareth chuckled and then produced another crystal with a flick of his wrist. "No. Just the fae and only a select number at that. It's an acquired skill although not a difficult one to learn I will grant you. It just requires a great deal of patience which many fae do not possess. Although it is likely that your so called mystics above world garnered the idea from us. Many fae traditions and practices have been skewed and re-imagined in the mortal world."

"Like what for instance?" Sarah asked curiously still toying with the crystal.

The crystal that Jareth was holding began to shine slightly. "Oh Sarah." He intoned tilting his head slightly. "Do you so quickly forget your fairytales and legends?"

Sarah narrowed her eyes at the illuminated crystal. "What like...iron is deadly to the fae, changeling babies and portals found down rabbit holes? If that's so the same stories also painted fairies as the benevolent pillars of goodness and last time I checked they bite." She held up her finger to show him the now well faded scar.

Jareth gave a small scoff and turned back towards the window. "You cannot believe everything you read Sarah. But the fundamental elements, everything comes from somewhere. You should know by now even in your world nothing it what it seems."

Sarah traced over the scar with her other hand considering it. All of those years, it's like it had been partially obscured from her view. Never really noticing it until she was looking at it directly. She remembered trying to place its origin and always coming up short. As if it was just out of her memory's reach. Now she understood why of course.

"Toby." She raised her eyes from her scar.

He turned back to look at her.

"I have to know."

He nodded curtly. "Yes."

He didn't expand further and had cast his gaze back towards the view of his Labyrinth. Sarah got up from her seat and walked to where he was standing. The view from his window really was lovely. The sun was low in the sky now. It didn't quite have the tone of the sunset yet but the golden glow it laid over the various spaces in the city and the Labyrinth past it caused Sarah's mind to still, if only for a moment, to appreciate it.

"He wouldn't have become a goblin if that's what you're asking."

Sarah raised her head from the view surprised. He had turned to look at her standing next to him. His face impassive - closed off. For the first time since she had returned to the Labyrinth she was nervous.

"Then what? What was the purpose of taking him?" Sarah's voice was barely above a whisper. She wanted to know why he was so stilled over this particular topic.

"You said the words Sarah. I have no choice once the words are said. The game is set." His voice remained level as he spoke.

"That wasn't what I was asking Goblin King."

The return of his title did not go unnoticed.

"He would have stayed human. He would have grown in a human settlement not far from here."

"Then what?" Sarah said more pressingly now, knowing there was more to the story.

"Humans have little value here in the Underground." He turned his eyes away from her and moved to sit down on the window's ledge. "Very few of them possess any magic anymore and even fewer know how to access it if they do. They don't live long and perish easily."

Sarah closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She could just leave it there. She could. But it also could have been her brother. Ask the right questions and the answers you shall receive, she thought.

"What does that mean for the humans?"

His eyes remained trained upon his kingdom as he spoke. "The humans are traded amongst the various upper level denizens of the Underground. When a human has come of age a fae can take possession of it. The human will be marked as theirs and for the remainder of the human's life they will be tied to that fae. Family lines can be passed down and humans can be given. If a fae buys a woman and she births a son under the fae's house then the child's allegiance will be to that fae. Often the fae has the human kept as a sort of servant. Manual labour, household work and the like. In exchange the human get's the fae's protection for them and their aligned family. There." His mouth was set in a thin line. "Is that all you wanted to know Sarah? Are you pleased with this information? Does this satisfy you?"

Sarah let out a shaky breath. She wasn't sure what she was expecting to hear but it wasn't this. "You keep humans as slaves?"

He looked up at her then. Her eyes and face were burning she could feel it. She took the crystal that was still clenched in her palm and thrust it at him. "Why was I brought here Goblin King I will ask for the last time."

Jareth stood up and pulled the crystal from her hands. "I have explained that to you already."

Sarah tried to laugh but it caught in her throat. "Am I now yours Goblin King? Aligned to you for the rest of my life? Tied to you like a pet you keep? Although I must admit you keep me very well. Lovely room and wardrobe. Is this so the other fae don't look down on your human servant? So that they know that I'm better than their servants? After all the human of the king has to set a certain standard."

Jareth grabbed her by her wrists and pressed her down into the window's seat. He kept her wrists pinned and moved to stand above her bringing his face scant inches from her own. His face no longer impassive.

"I have explained why you are here already. I do not like repeating myself Sarah. You came here of your own free will. There was no wish involved. You are no more mine than I am yours. I have given you a gift Sarah. I have removed your ties. What do you have Sarah? What do you want? I have given you your freedom not once but twice over now. So tell me Sarah what will it take to satisfy you?"

Sarah's breath was caught in her throat. She could feel his breath on her cheek. She closed her eyes and turned her head from his.

"I have no ties."

He released her wrists.

"That was not what I asked."

"No it wasn't." She sat up. "Funny that."

He crossed the room to his desk and sat down in his chair.

"How many humans have you thrown into slavery?"

Sarah got up and placed herself standing in front of her desk. She did not have any intention to be dismissed so easily.

"Many." He did not glance up from his book. Sarah slammed her hands down on the desk.

"You evil, twisted creature. You enjoy taking the lives of children and babies away and leading them into the servitude of the Underground!"

She was yelling now simply furious. She pulled the book from where he was reading and threw it across the room hitting the wall on the other side.

"Always so dramatic love." He spoke under his breath raising his eyes slowly.

"What's that Goblin King?" Sarah hissed at him.

Jareth's gaze went cold.

"Yes Sarah that is me. The Goblin King. The creature of nightmares and horror stories told by parents to their disobedient children. You seem to have my motives laid out in a neat little pile. I thought better of you but you are still just a child. Who is quick to make selfish decisions and is not prepared to deal with consequences."

Sarah let out a bared in humourless laughter. "That is where you are wrong Goblin King. I have always been able to deal with the consequences of my actions. I run Labyrinths for them."

"Yes and then constantly bemoan about the great unfairness of the situation when you have no one to blame but yourself!"

He stood and smashed the crystal he had been holding since she had thrust it at him. It shattered and the pieces turned to dust on his desk.

"I understand that sometimes things aren't fair now Jareth but this is different. You delight in playing with the emotions of humans!"

Jareth's mouth curled into a sneer. Her entire body was burning with anger. She could feel it pulsing through her aching to get out.

"Humans Sarah or just yourself in particular? I attempted to have a reasonable discussion with you but you seem intent on attacking cultures and traditions which you cannot possibly understand. They are of no concern to you, your brother did not become one of them and I did not bring you here in ownership. Now I will repeat my question – what do you want from me?"

"I want you to stop taking humans from their homes! I want you to stop tearing families apart! I want you to…stop. Just stop Jareth!"

"Would that make you happy Sarah?" Jareth hissed at her. "You would have me change an entire civilization on the whim of a girl in woman's clothing?"

"Yes." Sarah breathed.

"I won't."

Sarah stood at the desk keeping her eyes focused on his. She tried to ground herself and took a couple of deep breaths.

"You keep them like animals. To be traded and sired."

"You are not seeing all of it Sarah. There is more of it than that." Jareth sighed running a hand through his hair. "Many humans prefer to be owned by a fae because of the protection it offers. Most fae families are not needlessly cruel to their wards and the humans have the benefit of food and shelter for their family for years to come. They have nothing to worry about if they are under the care of a good fae family."

His anger had abated slightly and his face softened but Sarah had cast her eyes downward tracing her finger in the dust of the shattered crystal.

"Nobody can be owned by someone else. That is not the way it works."

"No Sarah. It is the way it works." Jareth grabbed her hands to pull them away from the dust. "You must stop trying to impose your beliefs on our world. We do not take to it kindly. Do not try to speak of that which you have no understanding. You will only seem foolish."

Sarah pulled her hands from his grasp. "I just want to know, why you have to take such pleasure in it. Taking people from their loved ones. Why do you have to be so satisfied with it?"

Jareth brushed the remaining dust off the desk with a sweep of his hand. "Because it is what I do Sarah. I am what I have always claimed to be, the Goblin King. You have always known and named me as such. It would serve you well Sarah to continue to remember that."

Sarah let out a sigh and collapsed down into her chair feeling very drained. She stayed silent for a long time, the Goblin King returning the gesture. She was trying to clear her thoughts best she could but all she could think about was the faces of the parents as their children were stolen away from them to be sold into a life of servitude. Finally she looked up. The Goblin King was watching her leaned back into his chair arms crossed over his chest. He raised an eyebrow at her.

"Better?" He asked.

Sarah bit her lip. "The families…" she started.

He shook his head. "They don't even remember there was a child to be lost."

"I can't decide if that's better or not." She began to fidget in her seat.

"Why am I special Jareth? Why not keep me like you tried my brother? You could have used my bewilderment at my sudden onslaught of lost memories to trick me away into the Underground." She gave a small half-hearted laugh as the realization dawned on her. "To be your slave."

Jareth sighed and leaned forward towards her.

"I don't know how many ways I can answer this Sarah. I have been doing this job for a very long time -"

"How long?" Sarah interrupted.

Jareth just gave a pointed grin in response. "Long. So you must understand dear Sarah that when an opportunity such as this comes along I am not one to let it slip through my fingers. You defy not only Above world rules but Underground ones as well. I admit to being … interested in you Sarah." He leaned over to breathe the last word dragging out each of its syllables.

Sarah's breath caught in her throat.

"Interested?" Her voice came out higher than intented.

"Yes." Jareth did not withdraw letting the word hiss out from between his teeth in a breath.

Sarah bit her lip anxiously. He was definitely talking about her weird flower killing affinities...but she couldn't help the thought from creeping up on her.

What if he wasn't?

But he wasn't. She resolved. She wasn't and he wasn't.

She decided her best approach would be full out aversion.

"You mentioned cutting my ties. What ties were you talking about Jareth?"

Jareth withdrew then. "Your life Sarah. All your responsibilities put away."

Sarah's eyes widened in realization. "My job! What's going to happen to my job?"

"As I have said, they have been put on hold. Your entire life for the sum thirteen weeks you are here will remain unchanged. Time is very flexible to bend in the Above." He smirked at her. "Consider it a guest's courtesy. I assure you it is not a permanent solution. I can hold time, not stop it permanently."

Sarah breathed out a sigh of relief. Her little jaunt into a fantasyland was not going to cost her job. Relaxing she leaned back into her chair.

"Okay so I really am in the clear here. But short of exploring which I can't very well do for thirteen weeks, what I'm I supposed to do while I'm here. I mean, I'd hoped to see my friends of course..." she trailed off absently her gaze catching on his bookcases.

Jareth noticed her wistful look at his books. Shaking his head but smiling slightly. "A girl gets free reign of a magical kingdom and all she can think of is books."

She shrugged apologetically. "Sorry. It's just I used to spend almost all my time reading, you can't really expect me to go cold turkey like that. Besides just think of all the new stories down here that I would never be able to read above. I bet your fairytales are just the best." She flashed him a grin.

He couldn't help but return it and pulled a set of golden glasses from the air much like his own pair and extended them towards her. She took them and inspected them curiously. They did not have any ear pieces but shone incredibly when they caught the light.

"What are these?" She asked perching them on her nose delicately holding out her hand in case they fell. They remained securely in place.

"They are reading glasses. You are not familiar with any Underground language and to spare the arduous task of teaching you them all you may use these glasses instead. They will allow you to view any language in your own tongue."

Sarah smiled brightly and stood up walking over to the bookshelf about to grab one of the books on the shelf to test them out when Jareth's hand caught hers.

"But Sarah, I will tell you now, this is my personal collection. The books here are for my use alone. I have a grand and expansive library elsewhere in the castle which you are free to use."

Sarah withdrew her hand.

"I wasn't going to damage them."

Jareth plucked the glasses from her nose and placed them in her palm.

"I know but these books are mostly old historical texts or reference books. I highly doubt you'd find any of them interesting anyways. No fairytales here."

Sarah tucked the glasses carefully into the pocket of her skirt.

"So you're the sovereign of the Goblin Kingdom, but are there lands beyond the Labyrinth." She inquired suddenly curious.

"Yes of course." Jareth answered. "The Labyrinth and the Goblin Kingdom are just the territory under my ruling. The Underground on the whole is quite expansive."

"Okay...can I visit any of the other lands? Like is there a special land for magical elves or something?" Sarah asked tilting her head with a smile.

Jareth chuckled. "Each land has a principle population, mine being Goblins of course, but as you might have noticed during your first trip through the labyrinth there are many different creatures that may live in each kingdom. But to answer your second question you may not visit any of the other lands without myself present. It is much too dangerous and as I have no claim over you I cannot protect you."

Sarah huffed in protest. "I don't really think I need to be protected Jareth."

Jareth stepped towards her and pulled at a piece of her hair letting it run through his fingers.

"I understand it is not in your nature but it is for your own good. You are unfamiliar with magic and the laws of the Underground. I don't think either of us would particularly enjoy it if you were to find yourself accidentally indebted to a noble for seven hundred years. Myself forced to negotiate your freedom while you whined incessantly about the injustice of it all."

Sarah let out a small noise of disbelief. "Seven hundred years?"

Jareth smiled releasing the strand of her hair. "If you are good Sarah I will take you with me when I must travel so you can see some other kingdoms. Although I would like to point out that there is much more to the Goblin Kingdom than you had a chance to explore on your first journey here."

Sarah raised her eyebrows. "You will?"

"Yes of course. I can't very well leave you alone in my castle to wreak havoc, you'd be worse than the goblins." He smirked and stepped back towards the desk.

Sarah rolled her eyes resuming her seat in front of his desk.

"Now Sarah." The Goblin King lowered himself into his chair and steepled his fingersw together leaning forward expectantly. "I believe I have a question to ask of you."

Sarah shrugged and waved her hand absently. "Go for it then."

He smiled a feral grin at her. "I wish to know about your mother Sarah. Who she was and what became of her."

 


	6. Chapter 6

She reclined back into her chair slowly. A small laugh escaped from her lips. "My mother?" she breathed out quietly.

"Yes," he answered, still hunched forward on his desk.

Sarah furrowed her brow thoughtfully. "Became of her. Interesting choice of words, Goblin King. Actually, that's an interesting choice of question at all." She smiled ever so slightly. "I suppose I was under the impression you would be prying into my personal life and not hers."

He rested back into his chair. "Rather vain of you, Sarah."

Sarah scoffed. "Yes, well sorry, but given the events so far I think I'm entitled to a little vanity in regards to your intentions towards me."

Jareth waved a hand. "Well then correct me if I am wrong, but your mother is your personal life is she not Sarah?"

"Hardly." Sarah scoffed. "The last time I saw her in person was my sixteenth birthday. So I suppose that's what? Twelve years ago now? That's half a life." Sarah let out a heady sigh. "She's dead now. But I take it you knew that given the way you phrased the question."

Jareth nodded once in response. "How did she die, Sarah?"

Sarah shook her head. "It was a while ago now. I was twenty one. A doctor called me as since I was listed as the next of kin on her medical forms. She was brain dead, and it was stupid is what it was." She let out a laugh and bit her lip to stop it. "I shouldn't laugh, but to me this falls into what you might call the 'what's done is done' pile of things in life. She was in a car wreck. She was driving along normally until she wasn't. She switched lanes and crashed into another car. I had to give the order to take her off life support, and wasn't that a better day of my life?" Sarah laughed again. "Being called out of work to give the order to officially end your estranged mother's life? Dealing with her will and taking care of her estate? All the while the doctors are acting like I'm the worst human being on the earth because I came alone, I gave the order, watched her die and didn't agonize, and I didn't cry. I really didn't. Not once." She laughed again, with a little more hysterical an edge than she would have liked. But her voice didn't waver and she continued.

"There are a lot of things in life to be upset about: the fact that she stopped caring about me, the fact that her drug problems and misguided sense of responsibility led her and my father to divorce in the first place, the fact that I spent years trying to imagine worlds where everything was wonderful and the fact that the day I stopped was the day I got my 19th birthday card when she spelled my name Sara – no "H." So if I had to pick something in the whole scheme of my relationship with my mother to be upset about I choose the fact that I used to love her more than anyone else in the world. Then I didn't."

Sarah took a breath and met his eyes. "So is that enough, Goblin King? Or are you still looking for more about her and my personal relationship with her?"

Jareth kept silent, allowing her a moment to collect her thoughts. "She was in a car accident." It wasn't a question.

"Yes. Witnesses say they saw her drifting and then just change lanes suddenly. It was incredibly quick. No one in the other car was seriously hurt. But nobody could understand why she did it. It was like she just drifted over to the other lane and then just ..." Sarah smacked her hands together for effect and let out a small laugh. "I suppose it must have been the drugs. She struggled with addiction."

"Yes," the Goblin King breathed out. "Who were her parents, Sarah? What about your grandparents?"

She pushed her dark hair behind her ears. "Don't know. Both died before I was born. My grandmother's name was Lyla, and my grandfather was Patrick. They were born in Ireland and emigrated here in the 1930's. My mom was their only child."

"And their parents?" Jareth questioned.

"What's with the sudden interest in my family tree, Jareth?" Sarah asked. "Does this have a purpose?"

"Yes, it does." Jareth answered simply.

Sarah raised her eyebrows. "You going to share with the rest of us, Goblin King?"

Jareth gave a half smile. "No, I don't think I will."

Sarah let out a frustrated sigh. "You're incredibly difficult to talk to, you know that right?"

 

"I would have to disagree with you there. I think I'm wonderfully interesting to talk to. Otherwise I sincerely doubt you would have stayed here this long."

Sarah shook her head. "I said difficult, not boring. No one could ever accuse you of that."

She pulled herself up from her chair. "I don't know who my great grandparents were; I never asked. They were Irish. Now, I believe we've covered everything yes?"

Jareth extended his arms outward. "It would appear that way."

"Good." Sarah smiled. "I still have some daylight left with which to catch my friends."

Jareth's face darkened. "Sarah..." he intoned.

Sarah crossed her arms in front of her chest; her smile vanished. "Oh no, do not tell me I'm not allowed to see my friends. Where are they, Jareth? What did you do with them?"

Jareth let out a deep sigh and stood up from his seat. He waved his hand, and a crystal appeared. Your friends are safe and well, Sarah." He extended the crystal towards her, and images of Hoggle, Sir Didymus and Ludo each in turn made an appearance. Sarah found herself captivated watching the images inside the crystal before Jareth snapped it away.

"You should avoid looking too closely into crystals. They can be dangerous. Keep your mind elsewhere when looking inside, else you're likely to be caught staring into them for a number of hours."

Sarah rubbed her hand over her face. "I'll keep that in mind. So can I go see them now? I feel horrible; they're probably so hurt I never called on them."

Sarah turned to walk towards the door waiting for Jareth to open it. He walked up behind her, standing just a little too close for her comfort.

"They don't remember, Sarah. They've nothing to be hurt about."

"Well no." Sarah spun towards him. "I mean they must have realized some time has passed between when their memories of me disappeared and when they came back. They're probably wondering why they disappeared in the first place."

Jareth pulled her hands into his. "Sarah, I need to show you something first. Close your eyes."

Sarah pulled her hands back. "Why?"

Jareth sighed and grabbed her hands again. "Because you'll find it easier if you do."

"What?" Sarah tried to pull her hands away, but his grip was stronger this time. "Find what easier, Jareth?"

"Suit yourself then," Jareth said, lazily pulling her into his chest. He smiled, and Sarah felt like the ground had dropped out from under her as a million images flashed impossibly fast before her eyes. Then, before she could blink, she was standing in front of a large lake. Sarah let out the breath she didn't realize she was holding.

"That was less... disorienting than last time. Although I don't know why you couldn't have just used a crystal."

Jareth waved his hand dismissively. "I did tell you to close your eyes, and I only need a crystal when transporting adults from Above to the Underground. I can move freely at will within my own Kingdom."

Sarah looked around. The body of water in front of her went off as far as she could see beyond the horizon. It seemed to have an unearthly, pearlescent sheen that glowed slightly in the setting sun. Sarah looked behind her. They were standing at the bottom of a long wall of cliffs which were impossibly high. She turned to Jareth.

"Where are we?" she asked.

Jareth gestured out to the water. "This is the Sea of Dreams."

"The Sea of Dreams?" Sarah responded sceptically.

"Yes. It is where the dreams of the human beings go when they no longer have a place Above. Every dream that has ever died, been cast aside or simply stopped being real has come here to add to the sea." Jareth produced a crystal from the air and spun it around on top of his palm. "I can pull these dreams at any point and place them within a crystal. I have full access to them, and I can return them to their human counterparts if they wish hard enough." He stretched the crystal out towards her. "Like I did with yours, Sarah."

Sarah took the crystal, and it promptly turned to water, running through her fingers.

Jareth smirked slightly. "Slippery things, dreams. Easy to create, hard to hold on to."

Sarah turned her hand over, watching the last of what was once someone's dream drip from her fingertips.

"What you gave back wasn't my dream, Jareth; they were my memories."

 

"Ah, Sarah, for you they are one and the same," Jareth responded. "Just as an orphaned child might dream of their parents, you dreamed of magic."

Sarah stepped closer to the water. "These are the dreams of everyone who's ever existed? Here in this sea?"

Jareth nodded. "Every unfulfilled dream."

Sarah let out a long breath. "How far does this sea even go on?"

Jareth walked to stand beside her. "Much further than you'd think. Every day, more dreams come in, and the sea expands to fit them."

Sarah turned to look at him. "It's beautiful."

Jareth smiled slightly. "I think so too."

"Why did you bring me here, Jareth?" Sarah asked softly.

Jareth's smile disappeared. "To help you understand. These are all human dreams. Humans who live Above at any rate. But what happens when a creature of dreams loses a dream of their own? It has nowhere to go. The dream simply dies."

Sarah stood breathing quietly for a moment. She didn't say anything. Jareth reached out a hand and touched her cheek.

"Sarah..." He trailed off.

"My friends?" Sarah began looking into his eyes begging him not tell her what she already knew.

"They don't remember you Sarah." He dropped his hand from her cheek. "There is nothing I can do. I cannot bring back that which is gone."

Sarah sunk down to the ground hugging her knees to her chest. She was silent for a few minutes. The Goblin King simply stood at her back watching the perfectly still sea.

"I was Hoggle's first friend, you know?" She turned to look at him behind her. He raised his eyebrows.

"The gardener?"

She nodded. "He told me so. I was the first one to call him friend."

He tentatively placed a hand on her shoulder. She felt incredibly weak. Not sad or even angry, just weak.

"You know, in a way, he was my first friend, too." She spoke quietly, barely whispering. "I had friends before the Labyrinth, of course I did, but they weren't like them. They were friends of convenience. Afterwards we kind of drifted apart. But that's what happens. Kids grow up, and they change. I changed. I never felt alone, though."

She gently pushed the Goblin King's hand off her shoulder.

"I'd like to be alone please," she whispered.

The Goblin King nodded once. He spun his wrist allowing a crystal to form and extended a crystal towards her. Sarah just stared at it blankly.

"In case you get lost on your way back to the castle." Jareth explained.

Sarah smiled, pushing the crystal back towards him.

"Thank you, but I've always had a good sense of direction."

Jareth snapped his gloved hand shut.

"Just remember, the Labyrinth is not always a kind place. Be careful. There are things much more dangerous than a few decapitating fire weasels."

Sarah gave a small laugh.

"Like goblin men bearing fruit?"

Jareth smirked in reply before vanishing in what Sarah was now certain was glitter.

She waited a few minutes to make sure he was well and truly gone. Everything was incredibly still here. No ripples, no breeze. Just the oddly coloured sea.

Sarah stood up and slowly began to undo the laces on her boots. After slipping them off, she more urgently began to pull herself out of her clothing. They were too constricting she couldn't breathe. She began to grasp at the buttons on her skirt with such ferocity that she tore them off. She yanked her shirt as hard as she could, ripping it as she pulled it over her head. Quickly ridding herself of her undergarments, she stepped towards the sea.

Standing naked in front of the sea, she took a deep breath. She placed a toe in the water and was startled at just how warm it was. She began to step in further. It was incredibly inviting. Closing her eyes she allowed the warm waters to wash over her. An incredible sense of contentedness overcame her. She had no idea what she had been so upset about before. There was nothing harmful here, just restful. Her entire body began to relax, and she walked in further.

She had gotten in as deep as her torso when she heard, far off in the distance, someone calling her name. Not opening her eyes, she became annoyed. They were ruining it. It was so peaceful and warm, and they were disturbing that. She began to walk further into the water and further away from the sound. The water was just under her breasts now. She could submerge herself fully soon.

She heard splashing behind her. She was sure it wasn't her making that noise. What was it?

Something grabbed her waist, and she screamed. She was hoisted out of the water and found herself pulled into someone's chest being carried back to shore. She continued screaming and crying, pounding on the chest of whatever was holding her. She tried to struggle, to get back into the water. It was terribly cold in the open air, and the need to be back in the sea was a powerful ache. Her carrier maintained their stride and walked up on the shore, placing her softly down on the ground holding her down by her shoulders.

His voice was still faint despite him kneeling only inches from her. He was repeating something. Her mind was foggy. She didn't care what he was saying; he'd ripped her from the sea. But what was he saying? her mind urged. She allowed herself to concentrate on the sound of his voice for a moment. Maybe then she could make him go away and get back in the water.

"Sarah, open your eyes. Sarah you must open your eyes."

He kept repeating it. Open her eyes. Why would she do that? she thought vaguely. But the sound of his voice was getting louder now. It was making her head hurt. She took a deep breath but found it being caught in her throat. She'd stopped struggling to get back to the sea and was instead being shaken.

"Open your eyes," the voice urged as she realized its owner was what was shaking her.

Sarah opened her eyes. Jareth was kneeling in front of her, hands on her bare shoulders shaking her.

"Jareth," she said. Of course it was him. Who else would it have been? How could she have not known who it was?

A chill ran through her bones, and suddenly she was very very aware that she was naked. She hurridly wrapped her arms around herself both in an attempt at modesty and to ward off the sudden cold.

"What are you doing?" she growled out between clenched teeth.

Jareth looked equal parts relieved and furious. "You stupid girl, what is it that you thought you were doing?"

She pulled her knees to her chest. "I was going for a swim before I was so rudely spied upon and yanked from the water. I thought I told you I wanted to be left alone," Sarah retorted angrily.

He dropped his hands from her shoulders.

"Yes, and it is a good thing I anticipated... you."

He pulled himself up from his crouched position, grabbed her blouse and threw it at her.

"Had I not been watching, you would have drowned."

"You perverted little shit," she said, wrapping her slightly torn blouse around herself and standing up to face him. She didn't really care that she was mostly naked save for what the blouse managed to cover. "I can swim. You had no right to be watching me."

Jareth's eyes darkened. "Oh you can swim can you?" he said quietly. He stepped towards her so that he was barely inches from her face.

"Do you have any idea how many men have drowned in those waters? They are a trap. I was watching for your safety and safety alone, Sarah." He spat out her name and turned around storming furiously down the beach.

"Oh no. You do not get the high ground here." She ran after him. "It's just water, Jareth!"

He spun around and grabbed her forcefully by her shoulders.

"It is not just water. I had just finished explaining that to you. It is the Sea of Dreams. You have no idea how easy it is to drown oneself in one's dreams. Had you gone in any further you would never had the strength to pull yourself out. You would have died."

Sarah shivered. "I was only going in for a minute..." she trailed off weakly.

He released her.

"What possessed you to go in at all?"

Sarah sighed. "I just wanted to feel something else. I just wanted out of my body, out of my head. I thought the water would be comforting."

Out loud her reasons didn't stand up as well as they had inside her head. Jareth narrowed his eyes at her.

"Was it?" He asked quietly.

"Yes," she responded simply. Before he had pulled her from the waters she'd felt blissfully and completely at peace. She hated to admit it, but he was right. Had he not been there she doubted she could have ever pulled herself from the water.

He turned from her and again continued walking along the beach, this time walking back towards her clothes, Sarah noticed gratefully. She chased after him to walk at his side.

"How come the water didn't affect you like it affected me? I could hear your voice, but I couldn't really process it. I couldn't even open my eyes."

He just kept walking. "I didn't go in the water." Sarah noticed for the first time that he wasn't wet as she was. She stopped walking.

"No, but you pulled me out of the water; I felt you grab me."

He turned and raised an eyebrow at her. "I am the King of Dreamers. I control the dreams that make up those waters...I moved them."

Both of Sarah's eyebrows shot right up. "You moved the sea?"

Jareth smirked at her. "Once upon a time I would have moved the very stars."

Sarah walked up towards him. "I couldn't open my eyes." She said quietly. "I could hear you telling me to, but I couldn't open my eyes."

Jareth extended two of his fingers and tilted her chin up. "Like all good fairytales, the dream is broken when the princess opens her eyes. It was the dream keeping you from opening them."

Sarah laughed. "I'm a junior editor Jareth. I'm not a princess."

Jareth stared at her for a moment and then let his hand fall from her face. "Perhaps not. But you are not simply a 'junior editor.'"

He sat down on a rock and gestured to her clothes. "You should get dressed."

Sarah scowled. "I'm not getting dressed with you staring at me." She wrapped the shirt tighter around herself in an attempt to assert her modesty.

Jareth stood up and turned his back to her.

"Satisfied?" he asked not turning around.

"You'd better not peek," she answered before wiggling herself into her undergarments.

Jareth gave a short laugh. "What leads you to believe I would have any want to in the first place?"

Sarah rolled her eyes despite the fact that he couldn't see her. She pulled her skirt over her hips. "Yeah, well excuse me for not believing the guy who just minutes ago admitted to watching me swim naked."

"Not to mention saving your life, which you've yet to say thank you for I might add," Jareth responded, and Sarah could tell without seeing his face that he was smiling. He was teasing her.

Sarah tucked her blouse into her skirt, and walked over and tapped him on the shoulder. He turned around, hands on hips. "Yes?"

Sarah smiled at him. The king-like pose of arrogance was somewhat endearing to her at this moment. She sincerely doubted the feeling would last long. "Thank you," she said genuinely.

Jareth smiled at her.

"Don't expect to hear that again though," she said, pointing a finger at him in warning.

Jareth raised a brow. "Then do not make it a habit of needing to be saved."

Sarah laughed. "I'll try not to," she conceded.

Jareth extended his hand towards her. "Now that's been sorted, come. You can return to your chambers and change into something that isn't torn and covered in sand."

Sarah shook her head. "If it's all the same to you I'd rather walk."

Jareth's mouth tightened into a thin line. "It's not. Take my hand. We are going back to the castle."

Sarah placed her hands on her hips. "What if I don't?"

Jareth ran a hand through his hair. "Why must you fight me on everything Sarah?"

"I just don't like being told what to do, Jareth," she responded.

Jareth sighed dramatically. "Sarah, will you accompany me back to the castle? It is almost dark, you do not know the way and you are wet."

Sarah hesitated and then took his hand. "Fine. But in the future a please wouldn't kill you."

Jareth smirked. "Close your eyes."

Sarah closed her eyes, and this time when she opened them she was back in her bedroom.


	7. Chapter 7

She was considerably less disoriented this time. Only a minor feeling of vertigo and she closed her eyes briefly to allow for the adjustment.

Something that did not escape her notice, however, was the lack of Goblin King. She'd taken his hand to be transported, but now she found just one of his trademark crystals in her palm. She rolled her eyes.

"This is not nearly as cool as you seem to think it is, you know!" She said aloud on the off chance he was listening.

Briefly waiting for a reply, she looked into the opaque crystal.

"Well what am I supposed to do with this?"

Again she didn't really expect a reply and sighed in frustration. Somewhere in the back of her mind a memory reminded her of another crystal.

" _It's a crystal, nothing more, but if you turn it this way…"_

She gave a shrug and allowed the crystal to roll from one palm into the other best she was able without dropping it. It immediately vanished, and instead Sarah was left with a note.

" _Sarah I will have someone send up your dinner. Do not wander the Labyrinth at night. It is dangerous, and I will not be here to rescue you this time."_

Sarah arched her eyebrows, reading the note over. It wasn't signed, but it wasn't as though there was a great deal of ambiguity regarding who it was from. " _That presumptuous, pixie haired prat. Rescue me my ass."_

She crumbled up the note in her palm and chucked it at the wall, collapsing backwards onto her bed. All she wanted to do today was find her friends and get a handle on her life for the next couple weeks in the Labyrinth. Instead she'd played 20 questions no answers with the Goblin King and nearly drowned herself in humanity's broken dreams after realizing that she was, yet again, in a realm friendless.

She pulled the pillow over her face and shouted into it a few times. Despite waking up incredibly late, she was seriously considering crawling under the covers and not emerging for another thirteen weeks.

She sighed and pulled herself out of bed. As appealing an idea as that was, she wasn't even the least bit tired. She was also still rather wet and tattered from her little swim. A quick shower and change of clothes later, she emerged from the bathroom to find her dinner waiting for her on her bed. Sarah sighed. She wouldn't have minded company at the moment.

She ate her dinner in silence, contemplating her next move. She was far too restless to go to bed at the moment, and she figured the Goblin King might actually be right about the Labyrinth being slightly dangerous at night. On a regular evening she probably would have risked it, but she didn't think her pride could stand it if she needed to be "rescued" twice in one day.

She decided that it was perhaps time to locate the library the Goblin King had promised her. She wandered down the winding staircase from her bedroom, repeating to herself as a mantra that there would be doors there and to expect them. She was rewarded, and unlike the previous night's bare hallway she found a handful of doors and turns.

" _A great improvement,_ " she thought.

Sarah wasn't terribly focused on getting to the library; she was more interested in exploring the castle with the library as a good stopping point. Some of the doors were locked to her; she rather expected the same magic that was keeping the goblins out was keeping her out as well, but the ones she was able to open were incredibly strange. There was a room that so greatly resembled a forest she would have been sure she'd just stepped outside if not for the fact that she knew it to be night time. There was another room full of clocks that were all set to different times, some with 13 numbers, some with 12 and some with no numbers at all. There were a number of rooms that she suspected were for the goblin's enjoyment, filled with ale barrels and a small number of passed out goblins littering the floor surrounding said barrels.

What caught Sarah's attention however was a room she was quite certain she wouldn't have seen had she not been staring straight at it. Unlike the other doors made of an aged wood this door blended into the stone itself.

" _Well that's interesting,_ " Sarah thought, running her fingers over the edges of the door. Much like Jareth's study there was no handle, but this only served to further Sarah's curiosity.

She placed both her hands flat against the door's surface and pushed. It didn't budge. Sarah huffed out a breath. There had to be a way to get in,; there was always a way. She paused, considering her options, and snapped her fingers in recollection.

"Of course! The right words. It's always about the words in this place." Sarah said aloud, still running her hand along the door's frame. "The question is, which words are the right ones? I don't suppose you could tell me, could you?" she asked the faceless door and got no response. "Didn't think so, considering you don't have a mouth to answer, well that I can see. So let's start with something simple. How about, open sesame?" The door stayed firmly shut. "Okay what about, open for me who enters here?" Nothing happened. "Oh come on! Alright, alright let's try, I command you to open for me…Lady…Sarah Williams of Above." Again, the door remained closed. "That was a direct order, you know. You could probably be in trouble for disobeying it." Sarah pointed a finger in warning at the door before stopping. "I'm arguing with a door. This is a new one." She pounded one fist on the door in a last effort. "Ugh, would you just please open?" Suddenly the stones began to move and shift, and where there was previously stone there was now an archway leading into a large room. Sarah took a step back, entertained. "Please? Really? That was all it took? I have to say, a polite door in this castle…not what I would have anticipated." She patted the wall, shaking her head in amusement. "Well thank you for opening."

She stepped into the room, curious as to what exactly would be in a room that was relatively hidden from the rest of the castle. Slightly disappointed, she noticed that it was almost completely bare except for a fireplace at the end of the room and a number of tapestries lining the walls.

She stared at the tapestries in interest. They had to be important if they were so well protected. They were long, descending from the ceiling and almost touching the floor, and relatively wide at that. The fabrics were beautiful and designs intricate and they held the signs of remarkable age. There was a thin layer of dust coating most of the patterns, indicating that it had been some time since anyone had spent time looking at them. Many of the tapestries showed scenery, some of which Sarah thought she recognized from the Labyrinth. There were tapestries of fairies, of dwarves and of goblins. There were also tapestries of creatures Sarah had only read about: kelpies, dryads, sphinxes. The ones that stood out, however, were the tapestries of beautiful fae. Sarah stepped towards the largest tapestry on her left and wiped away some of the dust from the bottom. There was an inscription; she could not read it, as it was written in the same language she had seen printed in the books in Jareth's study. She pulled the glasses that he had given her earlier out of the pocket of her skirt, glad she had remembered them. She placed them on her nose carefully and bent down to read the writing.

" _Gwrtheyrn at the Great Divide"_

Sarah stood back to get a better look at the tapestry. There was a figure, a man, Sarah supposed, with long, white-blonde hair mounted on a great, white horse. He was clad in dark armor which sharply contrasted the white of his hair and skin. The background was a great plain, and he was surrounded by bodies at the hooves of the horse. The figure had the same sharp features as the Goblin King, but Jareth's looked almost soft in comparison. There was no mistaking the power of this creature; he was fearsome and unforgiving even in this woven form, and Sarah shuddered thinking about what he must have been like in the flesh.

Sarah moved on to the one next to it. This one was of a woman with long red hair reaching nearly to the ground. She was naked, standing in a forest, one hand resting on the trunk of a tree while the other held a fruit at which Sarah squinted, trying to recognize it. It looked to her eyes like a pomegranate, and Sarah gasped in recognition and brushed the bottom to read the writing.

" _Avaina Bride of Gwrtheyrn"_

Sarah looked around the edges to see if there was more writing, curious about the woman who reminded her very strongly of another legend from her own world. She lifted the edge of the tapestry carefully to see the back and instead found another archway.

Sarah grinned widely. A castle always had secret passages. She stepped into the tunnel, letting the tapestry fall behind her. She hoped this one wouldn't lead to a dark oubliette somewhere but was willing to risk it to see where it might end up taking her.

She walked slowly, letting her hands guide her along the wall, as it was dark enough that she couldn't see where she was going. The further she walked the more hunched she became until she was crawling along the tunnel on her hands and knees. Frequently she would hear sounds from the other side of the walls. Often she was sure they were goblins drunkenly causing a ruckus or setting various other wings of the castle on fire. She crawled for what felt like hours, her hands and knees running raw and no end in sight. She wasn't the kind to get panicky, but she was concerned she might have found herself trapped with no idea where in the castle she was. If she was still even in the castle, she thought, remembering the underground tunnels of the Labyrinth.

Sarah pulled her legs up to her chest and leaned against the wall. She closed her eyes and sighed. She really should have thought this plan through. She'd been crawling for ages past a dozen twists and turns. It was doubtable she could even find her way back to the beginning if she tried, and she felt increasingly exhausted. Her only real option was to keep going forward and to hope that the tunnel eventually led somewhere.

She righted herself back onto her hands and knees and spoke aloud just in case the castle was listening. "I would very much like a way out now, please?" Sarah groaned when nothing happened and continued to crawl forward, but within a few minutes Sarah felt the tunnel begin to slope downwards until she was having a hard time keeping a grip on the floor. Relatively aware of just how high up she likely was, she tried to grab onto the sides to keep herself from sliding down. She felt her fingers scrape at the stone and knew it was no good when there was nothing to grab onto. She took a deep breath. "Okay, and a soft landing would also be good, thank you!" she cried before feeling herself slip completely. The stones shifted, and she slid down until she was entirely vertical, falling down a tunnel with a faint light at the end. She brought her arms up to her face, closing her eyes bracing for impact and fell through the chute landing with a soft thud.

Right onto the Goblin King's bed. The reason Sarah knew it was the Goblin King's bed was that the aforementioned king was currently in said bed.

"Sarah?" he asked, surprised brushing his eyes.

Sarah noticed he wasn't wearing the gloves that normally covered his hands. As he sat up to face her she could see that save for his pendant, beneath the covers he wasn't wearing much of anything at all. She felt her face grow hot as her eyes lingered briefly over his bare torso. He was much more toned then she would have guessed from his lean figure, and while there was no mistaking his strength, she hadn't really considered the physical representation of this. She doubted she would be forgetting it anytime soon. She swallowed hard and brought her gaze back up towards his face.

"Sarah, what are you doing in my bed?" he asked, now looking somewhat amused if still confused.

"Uh, I fell?" she responded, biting her lip uncertainly. She looked up, searching for the tunnel or trap door she fell through. "There was a chute, no a tunnel. A tunnel that became a chute and I fell." Unfortunately there was no sign of either a tunnel or a chute as far as she could see, and she realized the castle must have closed it back up.

Jareth raised a brow. "You were in a tunnel? Dare I ask where you entered this tunnel, Sarah, and how it led you to my chambers and in particular my bed as there are no tunnels that I am aware of that lead into this room?"

Sarah realized that there was a possibility, a rather strong one, that she should not have been in the tapestry room given how it was hidden.

Sarah smiled hesitantly. "I asked the castle for a soft landing. It gave me one. I guess I should have been more specific?"

"Oh, a soft landing? Is that all?"

She shrugged and propped herself up, meaning to make her way off the bed and to the door but realized to do so she would have to climb over Jareth.

"Do you mind?" she asked, shooing him off the bed.

"Not at all," he responded with a grin and proceeded to climb out from under the blankets.

Sarah clapped a hand over her eyes but not before getting an eyeful of his backside. Which, much like the rest of his body, was incredibly toned. "Jareth!" she cried, hand still covering her eyes. "Could you please put on some pajamas?"

He chuckled, amused. "Why, Sarah, these are my pajamas."

Sarah sighed. "Well then could you please put on a robe or something? At least until I leave the room?"

"Tut tut, Sarah. I believe only hours ago I encountered you in a similar state of undress, and I did not beg you to put on a robe. It wouldn't be fair to ask me to clothe when I did not force it of you, now would it? After all, I know how important it is to you that I am fair. I think this gives us a suitable basis for comparison, would you not agree?"

Sarah's blush deepened, remembering that he had in fact seen her completely naked earlier that day.

"No, I wouldn't. Exceptions can be made for people who are in mortal danger, but so unless you want me to guarantee you find yourself in a similar state of peril – robe up, Jareth!"

Sarah heard him sigh with annoyance.

"There, quite satisfied?" he asked.

Sarah peeked out from between her fingers to see him wearing a short silk dressing gown tied just below his waist and left gaping at the chest leaving only his pendant dangling on the long chain. She rolled her eyes.

"Just barely."

He offered her a hand, and she pulled herself out of his large bed. She stood up and brushed herself off, aware that she'd coated herself in a fine layer of dust and dirt from the tunnel. Jareth's lips pursed together in displeasure as she shook the dirt off of her skirt.

"That is the second outfit today you have ruined. It is a good thing your wardrobe should be ready within the week, else I scarcely think you'd have anything to wear at all."

Sarah shrugged, unconcerned. "It's just a little dirt. Nothing a good washing won't fix."

Jareth stepped closer and pulled at the sleeve of her blouse, lightly tracing a large rip she hadn't noticed before. His bare fingers grazed over her skin, and she held back a shudder. It was the first time  _he'd_  touched her instead of his gloves. It was just a brush, but she could still feel the intensity and the sheer otherness of his touch. It unnerved her greatly and granted her a better understanding of why he always kept his hands gloved.

"Yes, this tear here. Certainly something a soak can mend." He agreed mockingly.

"Okay, so it might have been a bit rougher than I'd thought."

She pulled her arm from his hands, but he held firm, pulling up her sleeve harshly to reveal a cut she didn't remember getting.

"You're bleeding," he noted, outlining the sides of the abrasion.

"It's just a scratch," Sarah said, trying to appear unbothered by watching him finger the edges of the scrape. Her breath became slightly more ragged as his fingers moved, sending small sparks of something sharp through her core.

"What are you doing?" she asked, slightly breathy.

He ran his finger over the top of it, and the skin began to knit itself back together. The cut now looked a couple of days old, and the blood had dried up. This time Sarah couldn't hold back the shudder.

"How did you do that?"

He released her arm and crossed his arms in front of his chest as if to avoid the temptation of touching her again.

"You're right. It was only a scratch. Anything larger and I wouldn't have made a difference."

Sarah ran her own hand over the cut. It wasn't gone completely, but it would be soon. She looked up at him curiously. "Your magic can fix wounds?"

Jareth tilted his head askance with a small smile.

"Hardly. But I can mend minor abrasions. There are healers who take care of the real injuries."

"Okay well … thank you," Sarah said, surprised.

He nodded his head graciously, and Sarah paused to consider his bedroom. If hers was big it was nothing compared to this. The enormous bed in the center wouldn't have had a hard time breaking her fall as it was so expansive. There was a grand fireplace across from it with another grand tapestry hanging above it. Sarah glanced at it and asserted the figure in the centre of it must be Jareth from the leisurely yet still regal pose and the wild tuffs of hair. There was a large soft carpet covering the area around the bed, and on the far end of the room was a full length mirror. Full length, but was wide enough that two people could stand in front of it side by side and still have enough space to see each other completely in it. At the end of the room closest to her there was a desk and a single chair. It was not as cluttered as the desk in his study, with all its papers piled atop it, but there were a handful of sheets laid about. There were a few doors, again without handles, Sarah noted, and two large bay windows on either side of the bed with cushions at the base of it. Yes, there was no doubt about whose suite this was once Sarah got a good look at it.

Jareth caught her eyes wandering over the room, and she gave a small laugh.

"Nice, uh, place you've got here. I think you could fit almost my entire apartment in this room if you wanted."

Jareth smiled. "You like it? You never did tell me how you found your quarters, Sarah."

Sarah smiled, embarrassed at her lack of manners. The frustration this morning at not being able to find her way around the castle had caused her to forget. "It's lovely, thank you. Exactly what I had in mind of a guest room in your castle actually."

He bowed his head in thanks. "Good. My castle may not be as … ornate as some of the other kingdom's keeps, but I prefer it kept this way."

Sarah nodded in agreement, picturing fussy castles done up like Versailles.

"Anyways I'm going to go back to my room now. I'm sorry I disturbed your sleep, and, uh, thank you again for healing my cut."

Sarah made her way to the door and pressed on the wood.

"Please open." The door did not part to allow her to pass like the stone for the tapestry room, and Sarah placed her hands on her hips, frustrated.

"Allow me," a voice breathed in her ear, and she felt the tips of Jareth's hair skim across her shoulders. He placed his hands on her hips and guided her out of the way and then raised a hand to vanish the door.

Sarah smiled in thanks, and as she placed her hand on the edge of the door he took it in his and placed a soft kiss on top of it. Sarah's breath caught in her throat as his lips brushed against her skin. It was a much more familiar gesture than she was used to, and that alone would have caught her off guard. The fact that it was coming from the Goblin King and the dart of electricity that shot through her like lightning when he touched her only put her more off balance. It wasn't fair. He was too intense for her, unaccustomed to his touch as she was.

"You're quite welcome, Sarah. Sleep well, Precious."

He grinned pointedly and raised a hand, re-appearing the door. With her on the other side of it.

Sarah blinked, still slightly dazed, and then dragged a hand down her face, groaning.

" _There have got to be some ground rules established,"_ she decided, heading back towards her room.  _"Starting tomorrow."_


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There is also some slight dubcon in this chapter as a warning.  
> If you were wondering, Gwrtheyrn is pronounced "Goor-thay-n" and Avaina is pronounced "A-vain-ah".

_There were trees everywhere. It was not a forest. Or at least not a forest that could ever be encountered anywhere Above. The trees were much too large and much too thickly together. Anyone walking through these woods would feel as though they were being suffocated by them. The trees reaching out their branches to grab hold of them. To take any part of them they could. A hair, a tear of clothing, some blood. The roots raised, poised to trip those who weren't careful to watch where they were going. The treetops with their leaves knitted so closely together that only patches of sunlight shone through in small places, giving the forest the illusion of being in eternal night. Those who did emerge had lost pieces of themselves, taken by the trees. Perhaps most horrifying of all about the woods was just how beautiful it was. How enticing and inviting. A child wandering in would be lost forever. It is much more difficult for children to resist beauty. For they do not yet know how cruel beauty can be._

_(Come away little child_

_To the waters and the wild…)_

_It was in these woods that she spent most of her time. She wasn't hiding so much as learning. The trees would tell her their secrets, and she would keep them. She alone could part the branches and see her way through to the sunlit clearings. She was safe here. Nothing could ever harm her. Protected by the oldest storytellers in the Underground - the trees._

_It was there he found her. Walking in one of the smallest beams of sunlight. Completely bare and alone. He blended into the shadows easily. His attire as black as night he appeared a part of them. His eyes slid down her frame, less entranced by her curves, than the sight of her like this. Illuminated by the sunlight and the natural beauty she so treasured. He stood in the shadows for a time, content just to watch her. Entirely at ease with herself and with the world. He didn't linger too long, for she would soon know of his presence there. He stepped forward, stretching his hand outwards in front of him, parting the trees and allowing his face to become visible in the reflected sunlight. A small smile played upon her lips._

" _You moved the trees."_

_He smirked slightly, returning her smile._

" _I would move the very stars."_

_She turned to face him giving a small bow allowing her long red hair to fall forward from her shoulders covering her breasts._

" _Gwrtheyrn, I was wondering when I would see you."_

" _Avaina, you need only have called." He stepped forward slightly, consciously aware of how the trees guarded themselves at his movement._

" _And so I have. The reasons for which I'm sure you know by now." She turned from him, sitting gracefully down on a moss covered log. "I will make the same request I have been making for the last thirteen years. Stop this foolishness, and put an end to the war."_

_Gwrtheyrn tensed slightly. "You know I cannot do that. The time has passed, and we are at a parting of the ways."_

" _You will be dooming an entire race. You doom my family." She raised her brown eyes to meet his pale blue ones. "You doom me."_

_Gwrtheyrn stepped towards her but felt the trees begin to shift. He growled in the back of his throat._

" _I have offered you a chance. Stay with me and become my bride. You will have the protection of my crown and of the Underground."_

_Avaina stood up fists clenched angrily. "And what of my family? You would have me watch them die from my beautiful palace? Watch them all die as the light goes out of them? A gilded cage and nothing more, Gwrtheyrn."_

_She turned from him to rest her head against the tree._

_Gwrtheyrn stepped over the rising roots and held a hand out to block the branches. They yielded to his magic, and he hesitantly placed a hand on the woman's shoulder._

" _It is ending soon. I can feel it. Time cannot be re-written here. It is set. I refuse to watch you die, Avaina."_

_She turned to him, his hand still resting on her bare skin._

" _Yet if you take me by force you will see it none the less. You are a king, Gwrtheyrn, and while I have no love for you, I have a great love of my people. Save humanity, and perhaps I will grow to love you."_

_Gwrtheyrn grabbed her wrists in his gloved hands and pulled her in close, laying a kiss upon her neck._

" _A promise then," he breathed into her ear softly. "Your love and hand in exchange for them. A kind that does not deserve you. You will be mine, and I will have your heart, your mind…" he snaked a hand down her front, grazing her breast and coming to rest just above her crux, "and your body."_

_He slipped a finger inside her, and she cried out softly. Feeling her body arch against his, he began to stroke her gently._

" _I shall not be the first. But I will be the last."_

_She turned her head and kissed him delicately upon his cheek._

" _A promise," she breathed out._

_She pushed him sharply and ducked out from under him, prepared to run back into the forest to hide between the trees._

" _Wait!" he called to her, and she paused, turning towards him slowly._

_He twisted his wrist elaborately, and a fruit appeared._

" _To seal the deal." He grinned, exposing his pointed teeth._

_She hesitantly stepped towards him, taking the fruit from his outstretched palm. The fruit was unnaturally perfect. Nothing that nature would ever produce._

" _It is a pomegranate." She clutched the fruit to her breast with both hands._

" _Yes," he answered simply._

_She cracked it open too easily down the center, placing a single seed in her mouth and swallowing slowly and deliberately._

" _I will eat one seed a day until there are no more. If you have not fulfilled your promise before the last seed, it will be followed by the nightshade."_

_Gwrtheyrn's fists clenched at his side, his eyes darkening. There was no mirth in his voice when he spoke._

" _It is done then."_

_(With a faery, hand in hand,  
For the world's more full of weeping than you can understand)_

_He fell back into the forest, vanishing from sight, allowing the trees to swallow him back into the shadows._

A crash and Sarah fell from her bed, shaking. A thin layer of sweat covering her frame. Asleep or not, it was painfully clear to her that what she had seen was not, in fact, just a dream.


	9. Chapter 9

Sarah pulled herself from the floor, still trembling slightly. Her nightdress clung to her back with sweat. She walked to the window, hoping the fresh air would help steady her. A look outside told her that it was morning if not very early still. Taking a deep breath of the damp, early morning air, she felt her heartbeat slow and nerves calm.

The dream, vision or whatever it was had shaken her. It wasn't that the images were particularly frightening but rather extreme and intense. It had literally felt like she was there experiencing it all firsthand. Sarah hadn't dreamed in years. In fact she could hardly remember the last dream she had before tonight, but she remembered enough to know that dreams were not supposed to feel like that.

She cast her eyes around the room for something with which to write. She very much doubted she would forget any of the dream, but the Labyrinth had a way of making people forget the things they once found important. Sarah did indeed know her dream was important. She just hadn't figured out why yet.

She searched the top of her vanity, rummaging through the drawers. She managed to find what she assumed to be a quill, having never encountered one in real life before. She grabbed the piece of paper on which Jareth's message had appeared on the previous night and turned it over. She was about to begin writing when she realized she had no ink. She let out a moan and was about to go hunting for mud to use when she remembered Jareth's study yesterday. He had been writing when she had first entered. He had then managed to knock most of the items on his desk over when he smashed that crystal, and there had been no ink spilt. Glancing curiously at the quill in her hand, she shrugged.

"Nothing for nothing I suppose."

She began writing on the small scrap of paper. Amazingly, or perhaps magically, it worked. Sarah smiled and hastily began writing.

Forest, tapestry room, Avaina, human, pomegranate, king, shadows, war, promise.

Sarah sighed looking at it. It was just the keywords, but they'd have to do. The parchment wasn't terribly large and didn't leave a great deal of room for detail, but at least this way she could hide it easily. Sarah shoved the scrap of paper underneath her jewellery box on the vanity, deciding it would suffice for the time being.

She determined that it was early enough that the Goblin King could be awake, and oh did she need to have words with him. If he was still abed she only hoped he was decent, as she fully planned on storming into his bedchambers if that's what it took.

Although it wouldn't beat her dramatic entry she made into said chambers only last night.

Sarah mentally cursed her own foolishness. She'd been so quick to seek out whatever possible secret was at the end of the mysterious tunnel she'd overlooked the fact that the castle had proven to be just as much a puzzle as the Labyrinth itself.

She slammed open the door to her chambers and heard a yelp followed by the unmistakable sound of several dishes clattering to the floor. Sarah winced and pulled the door back from the wall. Squished between the door and the wall Sarah found Lickered still clutching the tray while its contents rattled on the floor.

"Oh no Lickered! I'm so sorry I didn't see you there!"

Sarah crouched down and began to gingerly peel the, now slightly flattened, Goblin from the stone. Lickered woozily stumbled a bit before shaking out his limbs, grinning and standing to full height.

"S'okay lady! Bring you breakfast, look!" Lickered thrust the tray, which now held the smeared remains of what looked to be eggs and toast, towards Sarah. Sarah supposed the orange stain covering Lickered's front had been juice, and the last of the sausages were currently rolling merrily along down the hallway to freedom.

Sarah gave a small laugh.

"You know, Lickered, that looks delicious, but I had rather hoped to dine with the King this morning. You don't happen to know where he eats do you?"

Lickered nodded enthusiastically, throwing the tray off to the side, forgotten.

"King eat in feast room! Lickered bring you there!"

Before she could even reply Lickered was darting down the hallway miles ahead of her.

"Wait!" Sarah cried out, frantically trying to keep up with the goblin, but he was much faster than she was.

She rounded a corner and chased the last bit of Lickered's tail through a set of large, wooden, double doors. Out of breath, she nearly collided with the overlong regal table that stood in the center of the room. She grabbed onto the side of a high-backed chair to stop herself from slamming head first into the table. She heard the clatter of utensils, and she slowly raised her eyes to see the Goblin King staring at her, from the other end of the table, his arms crossed with a look of thinly veiled amusement on his face.

Lickered tugged on the hem of her nightdress. "King here!"

Still out of breath Sarah patted the goblin's head distractedly. "Yes, thank you, Lickered, I noticed."

"Lickered," The Goblin King spoke disdainfully from his end of the table. Lickered shot to his side, standing up stick-straight. The Goblin King banged the goblin on the head with his fork. "I thought I told you to bring the girl her breakfast in her chambers. Not to bring her to me. Was I unclear in any part of my instructions?"

Lickered shook his head furiously. "Nope. But girl no want breakfast. Want King."

Jareth's eyebrows shot up and he smiled smugly glancing at Sarah who groaned.

"Oh? Is that so? Well in that case I shouldn't like to deny Ms. Williams of my presence. Fetch her a fresh tray of breakfast." He whacked the goblin once more on the head with his fork before throwing it off to the side. "I will also require a new fork."

Lickered nodded quickly, bowing before running out the doors behind Sarah.

Jareth smirked at her and gestured to the seat on his left side.

"Please. Sit."

Sarah reluctantly sat down in the chair, glaring at him.

"That was not what happened, you know."

Jareth raised one eyebrow at her.

"Oh no? Yes, you're rather more direct than that Sarah. Tumbling into my bed at all hours of the night instead."

Sarah rolled her eyes defensively crossing her arms in front of her chest, still smarting from the memory.

"That is not what happened either, and you know it."

Jareth chuckled, turning back to his breakfast. "Oh yes I almost forgot about that mysterious tunnel from nowhere that leads straight into my bed. How careless of me to discard what was such a finely crafted excuse I'm sure."

"What? No! It's not an excuse! Why would I ever want to 'tumble into your bed'?"

Jareth gave her a toothy grin.

"No, don't answer that." Sarah held up a hand to stop him before he had the chance to speak.

Jareth shrugged, unconcerned.

"As you wish. Instead let us discuss what was so important that you came running to see me before taking the time to dress yourself. Despite my well noted affection for that particular garment of yours, in the future Sarah, we dress for meals here."

Sarah wrapped her arms more tightly around herself, cheeks burning. There was a large crash and clatter, and Lickered, tail only slightly on fire, came out from the kitchens carrying another tray for Sarah and a fork for the king. He placed the tray down in front of her, bowing. Sarah expressed her thanks, aware that the Goblin King still had his eyes on her as he waited for her to answer his previous question. Sarah poked her eggs with her fork. She had been ready to attack only minutes ago, but Jareth had completely taken the air out of her, humiliating her before she'd even had a chance to sit down.

"I had a dream," she finally offered.

Jareth laced his gloved fingers in front of him, ignoring his breakfast entirely.

"Yes, I'm not surprised."

Sarah stabbed a sausage, and twirled it.

"No, Jareth, you don't get it. I don't dream. Or if I do I don't remember them. Not since…"

"Not since the first time you were here," Jareth finished for her.

"No. I dreamt after that. Mostly of the Labyrinth and of its… citizens." She wasn't ready to admit the details of all her dreams just yet. "It wasn't until a few years later that my dreams just completely stopped. I haven't had a dream that I can remember in years."

Jareth nodded. "I gave your dreams back to you, Sarah. When one loses a dream as powerful as yours it affects all of them. Your dreams were a casualty of losing your memories of the Labyrinth."

"But I didn't dream the first night I was here," Sarah retorted.

Jareth shrugged nonchalantly. "Having your dreams granted is a rather overwhelming experience. Your memories returned to you all at once in the dead of night, and then you were returned to the Underground for three months. I don't blame your subconscious for wanting a reprieve for a few hours."

"I think I misspoke earlier. The … dream I had last night wasn't so much a dream as...something else. I'm not sure what."

Sarah took a long sip of her juice while the Goblin King watched her with interest.

"You were asleep, were you not?" Jareth inquired.

Sarah nodded, fiddling with her utensils.

Jareth picked up his own utensils and resumed eating as though his interest in the manner had completely vanished.

"It was a dream and nothing more, Sarah. I'm not surprised it was particularly intense as it had not only been some years since you had a dream at all, but yesterday you made the foolish decision to go for a swim in the Sea of Dreams. You are covered in the dreams of billions of creatures. It is only natural they would add a bit of intensity to your own dreams."

Sarah shook her head violently. "No, Jareth, this was real. I know it was real. I saw it."

Jareth tilted his head towards her with feigned interest.

"Oh you did? Well then you simply must tell me all you claim to have seen."

Sarah sighed deeply. "It's complicated."

Jareth raised an eyebrow, smirking. "I'm sure it is."

Sarah bit her lip in hesitation. She was really getting tired of the Goblin King's attitude. She knew what she saw. But trying to describe it, she was concerned he might find out about her wanderings in the tapestry room. Curiosity, as always, won over self-preservation with Sarah.

"There were these two…creatures. One of them was a king. Or at least the woman, I think she was human, called him a king. The other was like you, a fae I believe. They were meeting in the woods. He found her there. She was naked and they made a deal about a war. She called him Gwrtheyrn and her name was Avaina."

With their names Jareth's eyes darkened slightly. It was quick. If Sarah hadn't been paying attention she wouldn't have noticed it, before the usual mask of indifference replaced it.

Jareth laughed and turned back to his breakfast. "It sounds like an old fairy story. Something that a girl who loves fantasy stories and swam in the dreams of children might have seen."

Sarah knew that he wasn't going to tell her what her dream meant. He was keeping something from her. There was no sense provoking him if he wouldn't yield; there were other ways of finding out information after all.

Sarah smiled softly. "I suppose you're right. It does sound silly when I say it out loud like that."

Jareth nodded. "There, see, nothing to worry about. Certainly nothing to be charging into the dining hall half naked for."

Jareth grinned at her apparel again, and Sarah cursed herself for not having enough sense to at least grab a robe. She pushed her plate away and stood up, nodding towards Jareth.

"A valid point. If you'll excuse me, I'm going to get dressed. I'm not really hungry this morning it seems. Still a bit shaken up. I think I'll go explore the library in a bit."

Jareth waved her away with a flick of his wrist. "Fine fine. I have to pay a visit to the Sea King this afternoon so I will be away from the castle for most of the day. Do not go into the Labyrinth, and try not to drown yourself or wander through any mysterious tunnels while I am gone.

Sarah glared at him. "As a favour to you, I'll make a point of not dying or getting lost in your absence."

Jareth's amused gaze met hers. "That is all I ask."

As Sarah grabbed the door handle Jareth called after her.

"And Sarah, I do like that nightdress."

Sarah mentally shot daggers at his grinning form and turned on her heel to leave. She had every intention of doing exactly what she told Jareth. She was going to the library and planned to do some serious research on just who exactly Gwrtheyrn and Avaina were.

She hurried back to her chambers and dressed quickly in her only remaining outfit that wasn't ripped or dirty.

Unlike the previous evening where she wandered the hallways without a specific goal in mind, this time she walked while clearly picturing where she wanted to go and where she expected to find it. Much to her surprise, when she rounded the corner in the opposite direction of the kitchen, she found one of the castle's telltale large wooden doors. Without hesitation she pushed it open.

Sarah let out a gasp at what she found inside. She had been expecting a large, grand library, not unlike those in her favourite stories. What she encountered instead was indeed large and full of books, but that is was where the similarities ended. There were books scattered all over the room, in large piles, small piles and piles that seemed to be doing quite a good job defying gravity. There were shelves of course, too, but they were equally stacked with books in a most haphazard way.

The room was incredibly dark despite it being daylight. Sarah stepped over piles and made her way to a large window in the back. She coughed as a ball of dust emerged from the curtains when she attempted to draw them. She pulled hard on the long golden rope, and the curtains, which she assumed were at one point a rich burgundy, slowly receded.

A grand window filled the room with light, allowing Sarah a better view of the space. The piles and shelves seemed to go on forever, not outwards but upwards, and Sarah was certain that the room had to be at least three stories in height. There were ladders haphazardly strewn throughout the room which had even taller ladders attached to them, and the shelves had stairs attached to their sides. There were balconies and chairs on top of book piles. There were large couches perched perilously between shelves. The ceiling was impossible to see with all the books, and Sarah wondered if the room would get larger as more books were added to a pile. The only marker she had for the actual height of the room was the window, the top of which brushed the ceiling.

Sarah let out a low whistle and leaned on the nearest railing. She took a quick glance at the titles down the nearest pile. It contained everything from Dickinson to Arthurian mythology to books on cartography.

Sarah raked a hand through her hair with a groan.

"You know, this is all very impressive, but how am I supposed to ever find anything in this place?" she asked the room aloud, hoping that it might magically point her in the right direction.

Sarah sighed at the library's silence and flopped backwards onto a pile of books on the nearest couch.

"Yargh!"

Sarah heard a muffled escaped from underneath the pile and Sarah leapt up in surprise.

"Who's there?"

The books began to shift and fall to the ground as a creature emerged from the pile. Sarah's breath caught in her throat with shock.

"Hoggle?" she asked timidly.

The dwarf raised incredibly bushy eyebrows at her in surprise.

"No I ain't - I'm Hilly."

As soon as she said it Sarah could see the differences between the two. Hilly was shorter than Hoggle had been, and her hair was long and braided down her back.

"I'm sorry, my mistake," Sarah responded sadly.

"Now just who would you be?" Hilly paused, pulling a pair of wire glasses from her robe and rubbing them on the front of her dress.

"I'm Sarah."

Hilly put her glasses on and nodded once.

"A friend of Jareth's then?"

"I suppose you could say that," Sarah conceded. "I'm his guest."

Hilly began grabbing books off the floor and flinging them onto piles. Sarah figured there must be some kind of magic at work, for Hilly couldn't have been more than three feet and yet every book she threw somehow landed on the top of the pile.

"Now whats you doing in my library?"

"Your library? I thought it was Jareth's library." Sarah began picking up books and handing them to Hilly to throw, following her around and weaving in and out of the piles.

"Humph. It may be his library, but I'm the one who takes care of it. He just swans in and takes whatever book he needs, and then I never sees it again."

"So you're like the librarian here?" Sarah asked, watching in amazement as a book soared up a pile she couldn't even see the top of.

"I guess you coulds call me that."

"Then you know where all the books are!" Sarah replied happily.

Hilly snorted in amusement. "Course I do. They're right here."

"No, I mean where in the library they are. I don't know how you find anything in this place. There's no order or anything!" Sarah said glancing at the nearest pile containing both Yeats and Carl Sagan.

/

"Now that's not true. I knows the order because theys in the order I founds 'em," Hilly responded, plucking the next book out of Sarah's hands.

"Well how is anyone else supposed to find anything?" Sarah questioned.

"Nobody else has ever had that problem. Just you."

"Well then, can you help me find what I'm looking for?" Sarah placed a hand on the dwarf's shoulder. Hilly turned, raising her bushy eyebrows at her.

"Maybe. Depends. Why shoulds I?"

Sarah smiled faintly. "Because I need your help? And to be quite honest, you remind me an awful lot of a friend I had a long time ago."

"This Hoggle, was that him?"

"Yes."

Hilly nodded once. "Alright. What's it you're looking for?" Hilly resumed her tossing of books onto the piles.

"I'm looking for information on two people. Gwrtheyrn and Avaina."

Hilly stopped in her tracks and turned slowly to face Sarah.

"Now why would you be looking for information on them hmm?"

Sarah crossed her arms in front of her chest defensively. "I just am."

Hilly paused, considering. "Right well, what exactlys are you needing to know about them?"

"To start? I'd like to know who exactly they were."

Hilly laughed, giving Sarah a quick once over. "You really aren't from around here, are ya?"

"Why do you say that?" Sarah asked.

"Well, because for starters everyone in the Goblin Kingdom knows who they are."

"So you can tell me?" Sarah responded hopefully.

Hilly nodded and pulled a book from the middle of the nearest pile. She shoved the pile aside to reveal a loveseat and gestured for Sarah to sit.

"Gwrtheyrn and Avaina. Just because everyone knows who they don't mean they talk about them. They's from a dark period in the Underground's history. Back during the Great Divide, as what it's known to be called now. I take it you're from Above?"

Sarah nodded, and Hilly came to sit down next to her.

"Yeah, well, for a long time there was no Above and Underground. There was just the one. But a long, long time ago, a few thousand years or so, both the humans and the creatures of the Underground began a war with each other. A war that would cost both sides dearly and end up splitting the world in two. The humans took the Above and we kept Underground. The leader of the side of the Underground was named Gwrtheyrn. He was a terrifying leader. Bloody and vicious in battle. A great king too. The war waged for centuries, and the fae were winning. Humans were dying faster than they could breed, and you folk breed like goblins. If the war had continued there wouldn't be any humans left, which is exactly what the fae wanted. 'Cept for Gwrtheyrn. For you see, he was in love with a mortal girl, Avaina. He offered to marry her, to make her his Queen and to keep her safe with him. But she said no. She wouldn't let her entire race die while she was made a queen of the one who did it. Now nobody knows how he dids it, but for Avaina he split the world in two. The humans were sent Above, and we stayed here. But it cost him. Tricky piece of magic that. Nobody even thought it possible until it was already done." Hilly hopped up from the sofa. "Now that's all I knows, and you ain't gettin' anymore outta me."

"Wait, no, that can't be it." Sarah's brows creased in frustration. "What did it cost him?"

Hilly shook her head. "Nope, I just tolds ya I don't know. And if I did I wouldn't tells ya. That's Jareth's business, not mine."

Sarah smiled, pleased. "Now what would this have to do with Jareth at all? He didn't seem to know who Gwrtheyrn and Avaina were when I brought them up at breakfast."

Hilly groaned and placed a hand on her forehead. "I knew I shouldn't a tolds ya anything."

Sarah thought for a moment, considering Hilly's story and the particular scene she had witnessed in her dream. The way Gwrtheyrn had stared at Avaina. Their eyes so intense, and him like a dark mark upon the forest. They reminded her very strongly of another set of eyes with which she was all too familiar. Then suddenly, it hit her.

"Of course…" she whispered. "They're Jareth's parents."

Hilly flopped back down onto the couch, moaning loudly. "Look, that is private information's that. You didn't hears it from me."

Sarah laughed, clapping a hand to her mouth. "Oh but that means Jareth's half human!"

Hilly sat up, crossing her arms. "Now wait a minute. How'd you figure that?"

"Because Avaina was human, which makes her son, half human." Sarah exclaimed.

Hilly shook her head. "I never saids she was human."

Sarah paused. "Yes you did. You said Gwrtheyrn loved a mortal woman. That she was worried about her race."

Hilly shook her head more vigorously. "I said mortal. Not human. Parents were human, but she wasn't. Well, not completely at least."

"I don't understand. What was she then?" Sarah asked, confused.

"Somewhere in between. Just because somebody's mortal, that don't make 'em human."

Sarah remembered the hold Avaina seemed to have over the forest in her dream. It certainly wasn't a human trait.

"The forest," Sarah breathed.

She quickly pulled Hilly up by her short arms.

"Hilly, I need you to tell me where I can find this forest. It's incredibly dark all the time, and it's definitely magical. There are small clearings of light, and it seems rather unfriendly. Do you know it?"

"Course I do." Hilly huffed. "That's the Dark Woods. It's here in the Labyrinth."

Sarah grinned broadly. "Thanks Hilly. You've been a great help."

Sarah darted through the piles of books and was out the door just as she heard Hilly cry after her, "But you didn't hear nothing from me!"


	10. Chapter 10

_There is a rule in the Underground._

_if any food or drink is consumed there,_

_one must remain there for eternity_

_So the ruler of the Goblin Kingdom_

_Master of the Labyrinth_

_Had tempted the young lady with a peach_

_Just a peach, nothing more_

_But once she ate it…_

_The girl who ate the peach and forgot everything_

_She beat the Labyrinth_

_But she did not beat the Underground_

_Because she had bitten the peach, her life was forever entwined with the Underground_

_Because nobody ever leaves the Labyrinth_

_Well not really_

_But what the Goblin King had forgotten_

_And what the girl who ate the peach didn't know_

_Was that she was not an ordinary girl_

_The peach was not an ordinary gift_

_And she had only taken one bite_

_So the girl who ate the peach left the Underground_

_forgot everything_

_and so did the Goblin King_

Past the thirteenth hour he marched soundlessly through the stone maze in the Labyrinth beyond the Goblin City. He knew exactly where he was going, and there was not a soul to impede his path. Not a soul would dare.

He moved closer to his goal, and his walk slowed. He found the stone he sought and bent down to examine it. Completely bare. He pulled it up and turned it over. Extremely faintly, visible only in a certain light was a marking. An arrow. He touched it gently, running his finger over it. The residue came off on his gloves, and he stared at it for a long time before returning the stone to its place in the ground.

Another piece, another marking, another memory for which he could not account. He could have simply vanished to reappear back within his castle but instead continued walking until he reached the hedge maze and the sleeping Wiseman. With a flick of his wrist he produced a crystal. He ran it over the back of his hand once, considering, before throwing it to the ground in a blast of light.

The Wiseman woke with a start, and his hat started squawking.

"Ah, the light, the light!"

He grabbed the hat by the throat, but it continued to make noises if not words. He easily conjured another crystal and smashed it on top of the bird's head. Its eyes widened, and then it slumped over. Snoring loudly.

"Your Majesty for what do I owe this late night pleasure?" The Wiseman gave his sovereign an amused if tired smile.

"You know very well why I'm here, Wiseman." He thrust his left hand towards the hunched creature. The remains of the lipstick stained his glove.

The Wiseman ran one of his over-long fingers across the Goblin King's glove. "Ah, another memory, Your Highness?"

The Goblin King jerked his hand away and sneered. "Precisely the opposite. Another marking, another trace of the creature I cannot remember but just as maddeningly cannot forget."

"Ah nothing fixes a thing so intensely in the memory as the wish to forget it." The Wiseman pointed towards the sky. "As near as it is far, you'll find yourself trapped missing the moments. She doesn't exist until she does."

The Goblin King considered the place in the sky where the Wiseman was pointing. This was not the first time he had questioned the Wiseman about the girl. He could remember nothing about her except that one day he woke up in the middle of the night, always just before the 13th hour, and knew something was wrong. His land had been changed, and he did not know why. Physically he saw nothing. But there were traces, if one knew where to look. If one asked the right questions. His denizens recalled no occurrence, but that meant next to nothing. The land remembered her; she left marks. A demolished bridge over the bog that no one remembered falling, pieces of plastic his subjects obtained from places unknown. Most maddeningly of all a half-bitten peach which had been the first real part of her he'd found. That made the least sense of all. The Wiseman had eventually produced the ring he had been given by her. The only one to remember anything at all. The Goblin King was certain that he knew more than he was letting on.

The Goblin King was pulled from his silent reverie by the sound of snoring behind him. The Wiseman had fallen asleep. The Goblin King sighed; he grabbed the Wiseman by the two ends of his overgrown moustache and pulled. For the second time that night the Wiseman's eyes snapped open.

"Ah, Your Majesty! For what do I owe this late night pleasure?" The Goblin King pulled the Wiseman from his stump of books and threw him to the ground.

"I grow tired of these games! You know more than you speak, Wiseman! Tell me where I can find the girl who has left the imprint on my land. I will get no rest until I am free from her."

The Wiseman struggled against the ground. "Your Highness, please forgive me, but I have no power here – over you or her. I only read books and the stars. Everything I know I have gleaned from them."

"Well, what do they say?" The Goblin King pulled the Wiseman up to hold him at eye level. "And none of your word games, Wiseman. Tell me what you know, and tell me everything."

The Wiseman let out a low sigh. "Her kingdom is as great. It is there where you will find the girl who ate the peach and forgot everything."

The Goblin King dropped the Wiseman to the ground with a thud. He slowly removed the unblemished glove from his hand, and he gently touched the marking on the tip of his gloved hand with his bare one.

"I cannot touch her dreams," he stated quietly. "I cannot pull them from the sea."

He bent down to glare at the Wiseman, who was looking curiously up at him.

"Pray tell me, Wiseman. How is it that of all creatures, human and fae alike, hers are the only dreams I cannot touch?"

The Wiseman drummed a finger against his lip.

"Perhaps…"

The Goblin King angrily grabbed the Wiseman.

"Perhaps what?"

The Wiseman's eyes met the Goblin King's.

"I speak only in speculative terms now. I do not know, but I think, it is possible, that you cannot touch her dreams because she has banished you from them."

The Goblin King again let the Wiseman drop.

"Banished? Banished how?"

The Wiseman grunted and pulled himself upward unto his throne of books.

"A wish, I should think."

The Goblin King raised a brow, questioning. "A wish to make me forget? That is powerful magic, Wiseman."

The Wiseman shrugged and pulled a pipe from his pocket, lighting it.

"Not you, Your Majesty, her. A wish to remove all her memories of this place, completely and fully, a powerful wish of forgetting. To have never existed at all."

The Goblin King contemplated his words for a moment.

"She has invaded my mind."

The Wiseman laughed.

"I doubt she meant it. She was suffering, Your Majesty. I'm not even sure she knew what she was capable of."

"It doesn't matter. What's done is done."

The Wiseman puffed on his pipe.

"They say if you dream a thing more than once it is certain to come true. How often do you see her, Sir?"

The Goblin King clutched his pendant in his gloved hand, his eyes blazing as he narrowed them at the Wiseman.

"That is none of your concern."

A small smile twisted the corner of the Wiseman's lips.

"She will return, you know."

The Goblin King attempted to appear uninterested, tugging the bottom of his gloves.

"Is that so?"

"Oh yes." The Wiseman spoke assuredly. "But not until she asks for you. I guarantee, just as sure as I sit her now that it is then you'll know who it is you've been looking for."

"Pray tell me, Wiseman," the Goblin King sneered, "how is it she is supposed to call for me when she doesn't even remember I exist?"

"You are aware of the rules of the Underground, I am sure." The Wiseman pulled a fresh peach from his pocket and tossed it to the Goblin King. "Magic always leaves traces, and the Underground has not yet finished with her."

The Goblin King vanished the peach in from his hand. "She won't survive much longer then."

The Wiseman shrugged again. "I think you underestimate this girl, Sir. Her will is quite strong. The decision will be hers and hers alone."

The Goblin King crossed his arms in front of his chest. "How much longer, Wiseman? I grow weary of this haunting."

The Wiseman extended a long finger towards the sky.

"You moved them once."

"I'd move them a thousand times to find her."

The Wiseman smiled. "Then it is not long at all."

The Goblin King nodded and turned to make his leave.

"Wait!" the Wiseman cried out. "A donation, please."

He shook the small box in his hand.

The Goblin King smirked and dropped a single peach pit into the outstretched box.

"For your troubles, Wiseman. I suggest you speak of this to no one."

The Goblin King turned and vanished on the spot. The Wiseman pulled the peach pit from his container, shaking his head.

"Once upon a time, there was a beautiful young girl…"

The Wiseman placed the pit down on the smallest book on his pile. The gold lettering on the red hardcover glinted in the crystal moonlight.

The Labyrinth.

"Sometimes the way forward is the way back," the Wiseman whispered aloud to the stars alone.

Sarah Williams was good at many things. She could make an impeccable batch of sugar cookies, she was the fastest editor at her publishing company, and she could remember every locker combination she'd ever had. What Sarah Williams was not good at was remembering promises she'd made only hours before. What Sarah Williams was even less adept at was not letting her impulsive side get the better of her.

Sarah would argue up and down that she had the best sense of direction of everyone she knew. She made it a personal goal that, when leaving the house, she would always have a map book in her car - just in case. Sarah was famous for claiming that once she'd been somewhere, she could always find her way back to it.

So naturally when Sarah ran headlong out the castle, past the Goblin City, and through the junkyard on the westernmost side of the city wall, she was certain she'd be able to spot the forest.

There were a few things Sarah had neglected to remember. The first was that unlike her last journey into the Labyrinth, she no longer had her friends to help guide her. The second item being that Sarah never technically made it out of the forest. Rather she was carried out on a crystal dream. The third was that the Labyrinth was always changing, and things seldom remained in the same place for long. The forest was, of course, no exception.

Which is how Sarah found herself, once again, wandering hopelessly lost - through the stone maze.

Sarah sighed and leaned against the nearest stone urn.

"You know, one of these days I'm going to remember a ball of string or something."

Sarah tried to pinpoint the time by the sun's location in the sky. She guessed it was sometime after three, but not knowing how the extra hour impacted the sun's movement, she couldn't be sure. She had remembered, conveniently just as she'd realized she was lost, that not only was she not supposed to be in the Labyrinth in the first place, but that the Goblin King was away for the day, and she was more or less, on her own.

"Well at least I don't have a minotaur to deal with," she muttered to herself.

"Oh I wouldn't be so sure of that."

Sarah stumbled to her feet quickly, looking around. A challenge was the last thing she needed right now.

"Who said that?" Sarah asked, bracing herself.

"Ack, it was him! He never shuts up! Always yakking this one!"

"Wait…I recognize that voice…"

Sarah turned the corner to find the Wiseman and his talking bird hat perched on the familiar stack of books and, as usual, quarrelling.

"Wiseman!" Sarah clapped her hands together happily. "Oh am I pleased to see you!"

Despite the fact that he hadn't been terribly helpful her last run of the Labyrinth, he was the first creature she'd seen, besides Jareth, whom she'd encountered on her first visit. She was grateful for the familiar face.

"Hey! What? No greeting for me! You know I have a name too!" the bird squawked out at Sarah.

"Oh I'm sorry," Sarah replied. "What is your name? I don't actually know it."

"Well neither do I, but that doesn't mean I don't have one!" the bird angrily replied.

"Would you shut up!" the Wiseman yelled at his hat.

"I'm not speaking to her! She doesn't know my name!"

"She wasn't talking to you anyway!"

"I'm not speaking to her first." The bird glared at Sarah.

"That's fine. I was actually looking to speak to the Wiseman," Sarah responded.

"Fine! Then I am going to sleep, and don't you wake me until she leaves!" The bird promptly did just this, and Sarah began to hear snoring from the general direction of the bird's beak.

"You must excuse my hat. He's been in a rather bad mood this last century," the Wiseman responded apologetically.

Sarah waved her hand dismissively. "It's alright. I was just hoping I could speak to you. Do you happen to know where the Dark Woods are? I feel like I've been wandering this stone maze forever."

The Wiseman peered over at Sarah from his smudged spectacles. "My dear, might I ask your name?"

"Sarah. I'm Sarah Williams."

The Wiseman smiled slightly. "Ah yes. Of course you are, my dear, of course you are. I knew you'd be around shortly. Yet still, as near as it is far…" The Wiseman trailed off.

"Wait." Sarah walked closer, staring at the Wiseman. "You remember who I am."

The Wiseman chuckled. "Oh yes."

"But, nobody's supposed to remember me! How do you know how I am? Does that mean there's a chance my friends know who I am?" Sarah asked hopefully.

The Wiseman's smile faded. "No, no, no. That was a rather complicated bit of magic, child. There'll be no changing that."

Sarah's face fell. "Yes, that was a bit much to hope for. But how do you remember me if there's no changing it?"

"I'm the Wiseman." The Wiseman raised his bushy brows. "Perhaps next time you should be more specific."

Sarah raked a hand through her hair. "Yes, that does seem to be a reoccurring theme here. But where did the memories go in the first place?"

"Ah, still not the question you want to be asking," the Wiseman intoned.

"Well what question should I be asking, then?" Sarah snapped at the Wiseman, frustrated.

"I can say little more than I have studied and that question is out of my part. Parallel lines move fast towards the same point. I assure you, it's coming," the Wiseman answered and considered the girl in front of him. "I wonder why it is you're searching for the Dark Woods."

Sarah hesitated before answering. "I'm looking for answers."

The Wiseman nodded once. "Of course you are. For if you look into it, it will show you your dreams."

Sarah's eyes narrowed slightly. "What about my dreams?"

"I think you know, child." The Wiseman pulled a crystal from his pocket and stared into it. "Be careful to use your right words. It is not a lesson I should like to see us all learn a third time."

"Where did you get that crystal?" Sarah bent forward to look into it the way Jareth had showed her, but it remained murky.

"It is my crystal. It was-" he shook his small wooden box, "-payment for services."

"Jareth asked you for a favour?" Sarah replied, surprised. "What did he ask you?"

The Wiseman hesitated slightly before responding. "He, like most people who come across me and my fine feathered hat here, was rather lost. I told him what he needed to hear the most."

"What was that?" Sarah asked.

The Wiseman pulled a small object from his other pocket and held it in his closed hand. "I think, perhaps, you should see for yourself."

Sarah sighed. "You're not going to tell me, are you?"

The Wiseman shook his head. "No. Ask again later. Ask me your other questions some other time. But the Forest of Eternal Night, the Dark Woods, is three walls past mine. Look straight ahead, and you'll find it quickly. Don't let your gaze waver."

Sarah glanced up ahead. "I don't see it."

"Oh, but you will."

The Wiseman pulled Sarah's hand towards his and in it placed the object he was holding. Sarah opened it curiously.

"A peach pit?" she questioned the Wiseman.

He nodded. "To give back, and-" he shook his box, "-something in return?"

Sarah glanced down at herself. "I'm afraid I'm not wearing any jewellery."

The Wiseman gave a crooked grin and pulled a rusted blade from his side. "Such fine hair, a small lock of it will do nicely."

Sarah touched her hair instinctively. "Give me the knife then."

She took the blade from the Wiseman and hacked off a small piece of her dark locks. She handed it to the Wiseman and tucked the blade into her skirt pocket.

"I'm keeping the knife. I'll return it the next time we meet."

The Wiseman laughed to himself as Sarah walked straight ahead, this time focused on her destination. The hat peeped one eye open.

"She's gone?"

"Oh yes," the Wiseman responded to his hat. "But she will be back."

"Never asking the right questions!" the bird squawked loudly.

The Wiseman nodded. "No. But perhaps that is not the worst thing, considering."

The bird yelped. "What would you have told her?"

The Wiseman twirled his long beard between his fingers. "What would you?"

"Don't ask me; I'm just a hat!" the hat screeched in response.


	11. Chapter 11

Sarah picked at her food at dinner that night. She wasn't particularly hungry despite the fact that she had missed lunch entirely; even the smell of the food was disagreeing with her, with her stomach all done up in knots. She ran her hand absently through her tangled hair, which made her realize she must be quite a sight. She'd managed to change before dinner but had completely forgotten about her hair until she was halfway to the dining hall, and then it was too late.

"So Sarah," Jareth sat his fork neatly down on his plate and folded his hands in front of him, "what did you do today?"

Sarah did not raise her eyes to his, preferring instead to push the food around on her plate some more.

"Nothing too interesting. Spent most of it in the library talking to your librarian, Hilly. Reminded me a bit of Hoggle so that was nice."

"Really? Did you happen to go anywhere else by any chance?"

Sarah raised her eyes to his now.

"I went for a bit of a walk yes."

"It must have been quite a long walk as I have been informed you did not take lunch. Nor does it seem you're eating much now."

"I just haven't felt like eating today."

Sarah placed her napkin on the table, ignoring his stare.

"So if you'll excuse me I think I'll retire for the night."

She stood up to leave, but Jareth held out a hand.

"I won't."

"I'm sorry, you won't what?"

"Excuse you. Now sit down, Sarah, this conversation is not over."

Sarah crossed her arms defensively.

"Actually I think it is. Stop treating me like a child, Jareth."

Jareth stood up slowly and walked towards her.

"I will stop treating you like a child when you stop acting like one. You are deliberately keeping something from me."

Sarah turned her head from him.

He walked over to stand inches from her face. He slowly pulled her chin towards him with his hand. Her eyes met his, and Sarah felt her breath catch slightly in her throat. She didn't often like to meet his gaze as there were seldom more confusing things than staring straight into the Goblin King's eyes. They had the ability to make you forget nearly everything, and you were never too sure how you felt when looking into them.

Keeping his eyes on hers, he reached around with his other hand and brushed her hair away from her face, pulling a small twig with it. He held it between his finger and thumb and raised his brow to her expectantly.

"Now Sarah, remind me again what it is that you did today?"

* * *

Sarah wandered aimlessly through the forest, darting between sunlit patch to sunlit patch. She recalled that the woods had been dark on her first journey through them, but this was different. She could see directly in front of her but not much further. All she had to aim for in walking were the small areas where sunlight slipped through. Sarah had not been afraid of the dark since she was very small, but wandering through these woods she remembered why it could be so frightening. It was the fear of feeling trapped, not knowing what was coming or what she even left behind. It was hearing things but never being able to see them. It was feeling the barest touch on her arms, never sure if it was foliage or something else. It was realizing that she had no real escape. There would be no Hoggle to pull her over the wall to safety and no Goblin King to spirit her away in his dream bubble. She'd chosen to conveniently forget that even on her last journey in the Labyrinth; she'd never made it out of the forest herself.

Sarah closed her eyes and took a deep breath, determined to keep going until she found what she was looking for. She wasn't even positive what that was, but she knew that she needed to be in the forest. She took a step forward and heard rather than saw the tree subtly raise it root. She deftly stepped over it, smiling.

"I'm getting pretty good at navigating through the dark! You're going to have to do better than that to trip me up," Sarah called out to the forest smugly.

No sooner than she said that, she found herself walking into a large spider web. She gasped and attempted to pull the web from her hair, and the branches of the trees started to pull at her hair and clothes.

"Okay, I take it back!" she yelled to the forest. "I'm impressed! I'm intimidated!"

The branches continued pulling at her, leaving tears in the fabric and scratching at her skin.

Sarah tried to push and pull the branches off. She completely missed the newest raised root as a result and tumbled head first over it, smacking the back of her head into the nearest tree trunk. Sarah's vision began to cloud, and her head began to spin.

"Well maybe a little nap wouldn't be such a bad idea…" Sarah spoke to no one this time as she passed out.

* * *

Sarah yanked the twig from the Goblin King's fingers.

"I think you already know, then. I went to the forest."

She would not be giving him the satisfaction of appearing intimidated by him. Not anymore.

The Goblin King ran his thumb over the visible scratch on her shoulder.

"Hmm, that is interesting, Sarah, as I seem to recall specifically instructing you not to go into the Labyrinth and you giving me your word that you wouldn't."

"Well you know what else is interesting, Jareth, is how you seemed to have completely forgotten who your parents were when I asked you about them this morning."

The Goblin King harshly yanked down the sleeve of Sarah's shirt, revealing a much deeper cut. He ran his gloved fingers over the abrasion. Unlike his concern for her cut the previous evening, this touch held no gentleness.

"That is my business and mine alone."

Sarah pulled her arm away from the Goblin King's touch.

"I'm not convinced of that."

The Goblin King's eyes darkened, and he turned away from her.

"You've already disobeyed me once today, Sarah. It would serve you well to not press your rapidly deteriorating luck and drop this subject."

Sarah scowled. Her name, as always, a threat and a promise on his lips. She decided to push him just a little further. She wasn't to be treated this way.

"Why didn't you tell me about the dreams, Jareth?"

* * *

Sarah felt that the world was different when she opened her eyes. No longer was she in the darkest patch of the forest but rather in the sunlit clearing that she had seen in her last dream. Sarah gently stood up and rubbed the back of her throbbing head. She sighed and leaned against the side of a tree trying to make her head stop spinning.

She then noticed that there was a lit path leading from the forest out into what Sarah assumed was the Labyrinth. Given her recent head injury, she decided that perhaps today was not the best day to be digging through the trees for unknown information.

Sarah followed the path out of the forest and was surprised when she emerged to find it night time. She groaned, realizing that the Goblin King was most certainly aware of her broken promise and absence. But there was nothing to be done about it now, and she made her way back towards the castle.

"A child of the cracks….It is old power Sir….It seems to have been … enhanced since her last journey Underground."

"She is dead…The mother...not mine."

Sarah stopped, recognizing the voices. The latter was most certainly the Goblin King. She knew immediately that he was discussing her mother. She had wondered why he had asked about her. She followed the sound until she was hiding behind a hedge and saw that the Goblin King was conversing with the Wiseman.

"Of course she is. The real question is, why didn't you leave the girl to the same fate?"

The Goblin King let out a low growl.

"I needed to know what it is about her that makes her so special. Why and how could she have this effect on my kingdom."

"And on you." The Wiseman finished for the Goblin King.

The Goblin King scoffed at the Wiseman. "I am the sovereign. It stands to reason that if she is having an effect on the land then she should be having an effect on me."

The Wiseman chuckled slightly. "I do not recall any of the other denizens having dreams of dark-haired women haunting them."

Sarah felt her breath catch slightly.  _Dark-haired women…_

The Goblin King rolled his eyes dramatically. "Considering the main populace barely has two brain cells to rub together on any given day, I'd be surprised if they ever dreamed of something other than mead."

"But have your dreams continued?" the Wiseman prompted the King.

"No," the Goblin King answered under his breath. "They stopped as soon as she returned."

"Another motivation for bringing her here, then?" the Wiseman questioned, lighting his pipe.

Sarah had to strain to hear as the Goblin King spoke so quietly now.

"She does not belong there. It is not her home."

The Wiseman laughed darkly. "Oh no, she'd be dead within the year at this rate. But it is hardly the business of Goblin Kings to rescue the lost ones, is it?"

The Goblin King's eyes narrowed in the direction of the Wiseman. "She is a champion. She defeated the Labyrinth."

"And as such you have no power over her," the Wiseman sing-songed.

The Goblin King smirked. "But words have power, do they not, Wiseman?" He pulled the pipe from between the Wiseman's lips, twirling it between his fingers. "Why, it is interesting how she suddenly 'found' that book, is it not?"

The Wiseman raised his bushy brow at the Goblin King. "Is it?"

The Goblin King extended the pipe back towards the Wiseman. "Yes….I have my suspicions Wiseman."

The Wiseman chuckled. "What's done is done is it not Goblin King?"

The Goblin King paused staring at the Wiseman. "She swam in the Sea of Dreams today."

The Wiseman puffed contentedly on his pipe. "And she survived? Well that should prove interesting then. Perhaps the time has come then Goblin King."

"It will overwhelm her, Wiseman." Jareth sneered at the Wiseman's indifference to the situation. "I will not do it. Not now."

The Wiseman smiled "Ah, you risk losing her."

In one swift motion Jareth pulled the Wiseman from his seat by his beard. The Wiseman in response only held out his small donation box, shaking it back and forth, a clanking sound within.

Jareth considered the box and the Wiseman for a moment before dropping him.

"That will not happen," he finished curtly.

He spun a crystal off his hand and tossed it to the Wiseman. "I don't think I need to tell you that your silence is more crucial now than ever. Do not betray my words."

Sarah was rooted to her spot, completely lost in thought. She did not notice the Goblin King walking towards her. She quickly tried to hide away when he appeared, but he passed right through her as though she was no more than a ghost.

Sarah staggered backwards and tripped into the Labyrinth's wall. She blinked, and once more she was lying on the forest ground. Head throbbing and clothes tattered, surrounded by darkness. She stumbled to a standing position, awkwardly pushing her way through the branches as this time they seemed to part for her. She rushed out into the open air struggling for breath and looked up towards the castle. The sun was low in the sky but had not yet set. She needed to make an appearance at dinner.

* * *

The Goblin King turned slowly to face her.

"To what dreams are you referring, Sarah?"

She could plainly see that he was unnerved now. Perhaps it wouldn't be obvious to everyone, but Sarah could tell by his movements and the way he spoke now. He knew he didn't hold all the cards anymore. Sarah wasn't sure whether this pleased her or not.

"Yours, Jareth. About me, before I came back."

Jareth's eyes darkened. "You have been talking to the Wiseman, I see, along with your little journey into the woods. My, my, yes we have had a busy day."

Sarah swallowed thickly. "Not exactly, I spoke to him, but he didn't tell me about your dreams if that's what you're implying."

Jareth said nothing but began to pull crystals from the air, spinning them over his hands.

"You were talking about me to the Wiseman. Saying things like my world wasn't my home. He asked you why you brought me here. You've said these things before but I still don't understand what any of that means. I deserve some explanations, Jareth. Particularly in regards to your dreams of dark-haired women."

Jareth stopped spinning his crystals and vanished two of them, simply rolling one along the back of his hand.

"With such a busy day you must be exhausted. I think it's time you retired to your chambers, don't you, Sarah?"

Sarah froze, her eyes narrowing on the crystal.

"Luckily I'm not tired."

"Pity that."

Jareth tossed the crystal towards her, and instinctively Sarah raised her hands to catch it. As soon as she touched the crystal she found herself back in her room in the castle.

"Dammit!" she cried, running to the door. Tugging on it as hard as she could, she was unsurprised to find it locked.

"Dammit, Jareth, no! You can't do this! I'm not a child you can lock in her room! I have a place here! You owe me an explanation! You owe me that much at least!"

Sarah pounded her fists against the door to no avail. She threw her back against the door and slid down to the floor.

"You can't keep me here forever, you know!"

She threw one last thump against the door for good measure before burying her face in her hands. Her head still ached something terrible from the fall, and she hadn't had time to tend to the scratches and bruises she'd received from the branches. But the throbbing in her head had a great deal to do with the implications of the conversation she'd witnessed between Jareth and the Wiseman.

He had dreamed of her. The Wiseman had said it. But more than that, they spoke of her death. What had he meant when he said that it was not her home? Of course it was her home! It was the only home she'd ever known. Dead within a year – she recalled the Goblin King's initial speech when he had come to claim her less than a week ago. He had said the same thing then, about Above – home, rejecting her. That she didn't belong there. He had given her a chance to live forever in the Underground, but he had provided her with no explanations, no answers. Now it appeared she had even fewer answers than before except now she was trapped in her room in the castle beyond the Goblin City, her entire life Aboveground on hold until she returned.

If Sarah was completely honest with herself she would admit that the Aboveground did not feel anymore her home than the Underground had managed to do in only a couple of days. She was beginning to worry that the longer she spent here the less and less she'd be able to convince herself to return to her place Aboveground.

Then there was the matter of the Goblin King and his dreams. Sarah had not considered it before now, but how was it that both the Wiseman and the Goblin King could remember her fully but none of her friends or other residents in the Goblin Kingdom seemed to be able to?

The Goblin King had said he did not want to tell her for fear that it would overwhelm her.  _And that he would lose you_ , the back of her mind helpfully reminded her. That was ridiculous on every count. She was a big girl; she could take anything he had to throw at her. As for losing her, Sarah snorted out loud, well he would've had to have her in the first place to lose her.

Sarah shook her head to banish old memories of crystal ballrooms.

No. Besides that, she very much doubted that her first instinct would be to run after he told her whatever it was he was hiding from her. It wasn't exactly her style.

Sarah stood up and tried the door once again. It was still sealed to her. She tried shouting, "please," and, "open," at it a few times just to see if it would have any effect, but no luck.

She walked over to her window just in time to watch the sun vanish behind the Labyrinth. She never did ask if it was the same sun. Sarah took a deep breath of the early evening air. The stars began to appear one by one, and Sarah pulled the sheet from her bed to wrap around her as she watched the night take hold of the sky. She was fairly certain it could not be the same moon Underground as Above, as the moon here was much too large and bright. It shone like it really was made out of crystal. Not only that, where only a few days ago it had been weeks from being full, it appeared to be very nearly whole now. She tried to trace the constellations she remembered with her finger as they appeared. Interestingly enough, unlike the sun and moon, the stars here seemed to be the same stars as the ones in her night sky Above.

Sarah sat there contemplating her next move for a few hours, watching the clouds and stars move about the night sky. She figured the Goblin King must be doing much of the same. She was right; he couldn't keep her in her room forever. She only hoped he would let her out sooner rather then later.

She carefully climbed up to sit on her window's ledge and glanced over to notice that there was a small balcony a few stories down, under her window.

Sarah grinned; perhaps it would be sooner rather than later after all.

Sarah pulled the curtains down from their rod and began to strip the bed of its sheets. She knew Jareth would let her out eventually, but she didn't really fancy waiting around for him to stop sulking. Besides, she wasn't convinced that he would ever tell her what she wanted to know at this rate, so it was time to find the answers herself.

She knotted the ends of the fabric together and tied the end of it to the leg of her vanity. She threw the end out her window and sighed, noticing it was still about ten feet too short. Too far to jump, especially onto stone. Her eyes drifted over to her closet and her damaged clothes from the last couple days. She smirked, grabbing the nearest shirt and ripping it in two. They were ripped already, might as well put them to good use, she figured.

After attaching a couple skirts and shirts she found the makeshift rope was just long enough to reach the balcony. She tugged on it a few times, confident that the vanity could hold her weight. She took a deep breath and began to climb down the line, praying that the fabric would hold.

Thankfully they did, and, somewhat less than gracefully, she dropped onto the waiting balcony.

"Bingo," she whispered, crawling in the window.

The room was completely dark save for the moonlight streaming in. Even so, Sarah realized that she had either hit the jackpot or landed right in the snake pit. She had not realized that the balcony in question belonged to Jareth's private study, in the middle of which she was now standing.

Sarah sighed deeply. "Well it was always going to be this way, wasn't it?" she asked to no one in particular. "Couldn't have been just an empty bedroom, always has to be the extreme with this place."

Sarah walked over to the desk and picked up the first piece of paper that lay there. At first glance it appeared to be a drawing of her, but then she realized that the figure had no face as its back was to her. Their only resemblance was their shared long, dark hair.

Sarah touched her hair absently and gingerly placed the picture back on the desk where she had found it. She moved to the bookshelf, recalling that Jareth had said this was his private collection. Hopefully one of them dealt with memory loss, humans in the Underground or even Jareth's parents. She knew they were famous now, so there had to be books written with them in it somewhere. She silently cursed herself for not bringing her reading glasses with her. She traced the spines of them with her hands, seeing if one would jump out at her.

She touched the spine of one book, and suddenly, the space behind it began to gain a faint glow.

"Well that's interesting," she spoke aloud.

She pulled the book from the shelf and began to flip through it but did not see anything remarkable there. It was then that she noticed that the glow was not coming from the book, but from what was hidden behind the book. It was a crystal.

Sarah gently took the crystal into her hand and began to turn it back and forth just like Jareth did. The crystal began to swim with images.

There was the Goblin King wandering through the Labyrinth at night. He held a small ring in his hand…the same one she had given as payment to the Wiseman. The Goblin King speaking to the Wiseman again… no, before. Lipstick, her lipstick, on a stone, telling him of his dreams, handing him a peach pit, him placing the peach pit on The Labyrinth book. Then she saw his dreams, incomplete, chasing dark hair through mazes while crystal walls shattered. She saw him searching for pieces of her. She saw him wandering Above, places she had just chanced upon but missing each other by moments.

Sarah's throat began to close up. She couldn't breathe. She remembered her own dreams, dreams that had always been out of reach upon waking. Crystal balls and fair hair, leather gloves that gripped her hand and touched upon small of her back. Staring up at large castle windows and catching glimpses. Falling stones and something else…something she couldn't see but feel. It was guiding her.

Sarah clenched the crystal in her fist, and the images began to change to a terribly familiar scene. She watched her first Labyrinth dream play out before her eyes. The ballroom, spinning and dancing with the Goblin King while the masked onlookers watched and called out to her. She could feel it just as real now as it was then. She watched herself grabbing the chair and smashing the wall, shattering the dream. Then the scene began to play out again and again. Sarah watched it on repeat; she watched him sing to her; she watched herself run. She watched him find her again and again in the crowd.

Sarah felt the crystal slip from her fingertips and shatter upon the floor. The room was dark once again, the pieces of it glinting in the moonlight.

She bent down to pick up the pieces, dimly aware that if the Goblin King found shattered crystal on the floor, he would realize that someone had been in his study. The shards of the crystal were dagger sharp and cut the palm of her hand. She tucked them into the pocket of her skirt, realizing she needed to get out of there and she needed to get out now.

She grabbed the last piece of the crystal only to notice that it lay between two boots that had not been there previously.

"Sarah."

Her name. Just her name.

She slowly raised her eyes to the Goblin King's who stood there looking more furious than she'd ever seen him.

 


	12. Chapter 12

The Goblin King swooped gracefully through the window of his room and changed back to his common form. He dusted the glittering remains of the magic from his arms and sighed wearily. He sunk down into the chair at his desk running his hand through his feathery hair. His visit with the Sea King had not been as helpful as he had hoped.

When he arrived at the Sea King's palace, one of the monarch's young sons brought him to the underwater throne room. The Sea King could transform into a merman just as easily as the Goblin King could transform into an owl. His seven sons had the same ability. It was only with them as guides could the castle in the Underwater City be reached.

The Goblin King bowed low before the Sea King's throne. The glass walls of the palace cast a green hue on the room while kelpies, nixies and naiads swam by.

The Sea King was due to host the Beltane festival in a week, and the Goblin King had hoped that he might be granted a reprieve from attending due to the unusual circumstances. Instead the monarch had insisted that not only did he have to attend, he was to bring his newly acquired mortal with him. Jareth protested strongly that Sarah was here as a guest and not an acquisition, but the Sea King brooked no excuses. He had requested their attendance at the festival, and as a sovereign in the Underground Jareth was bound to celebrate and obey the High Feasts if called. As Sarah was in the Underground as his guest, she was bound to the same courtesy.

In exchange for his cooperation Jareth asked the Sea King for a favour. The Sea of Dreams bordered the Goblin Kingdom and the Wetlands of the Sea King. Therefore it was technically under both of their jurisdictions. Jareth had always had more power over the Sea and its contents simply because he had much more power over dreams. The Sea King could swim in the Sea of Dreams for short periods of time without being overtaken by the strength of the dreams, but he could not control them. Jareth could reach out and pull any specific dream from the sea and place it into a crystal. He could return lost hopes and wishes to human and Underground creatures. He could know what any mortal saw when they closed their eyes at night – if he so chose. A useful skill that had come in handy when tempting humans into the Underground.

However, the Sea was not exclusively dreams. It was also sweat and tears. It was a girl crying because she had been passed over for a part in the school play. It was a man spending every waking hour practicing at the arena for just one shot at a professional career. It was a woman working in the lab late at night begging for her experiment to please work this time. It was a million different moments of failure and of determination towards one's dreams. These dreams had strength and power. The wanting could overcome and cause drowning and madness if one was not careful. The Goblin King was the only one who could bend the sea to his will.

However, a unique situation had occurred, as the Goblin King tried to carefully explain to the Sea King. Sarah had walked into the Sea of Dreams, but before she could be consumed the Goblin King had pulled her out of the water himself.

The Sea King considered this information for a moment before smiling at the Goblin King. "Oh, you pulled her from the water yourself, did you? Well then, that is quite simple, isn't it? What you're saying then, old friend, is that she is literally-"

"Drenched in my dreams yes," the Goblin King snapped.

"But not all of your dreams surely?" the Sea King toyed with the Goblin King.

The Goblin King did not immediately respond. "What do you presume, Sea King?"

The Sea King chuckled. "Only that I'm sure the famed King of Dreams would keep his most precious dreams out of sight and contained…should he ever need them of course."

The Goblin King looked darkly upon the Sea King. "You do indeed presume much."

"Perhaps, but equally so I presume I am correct. And you cannot just rip them from her?" the Sea King asked, amused.

"Not without ripping her own dreams from her as well. Which I could not do even if I wanted to," the Goblin King finished wearily.

"Ah yes." The Sea King laughed at the Goblin King. "You have no power over her; I remember."

The Goblin King scowled. The Sea King was hardly one to talk of power over a mortal. "So you see my position. My dreams are dripping from her, and she now has power over them…whether she realizes it or not."

The Sea King shrugged. "As I recall that's been the case for a number of years now. She's been wrapped around your mind and now you hers."

The Goblin King's eyes flashed with anger. He was too bold.

The Sea King paused in thought. "That is interesting. But what is it you expect me to do, my dearest Goblin King?"

The Goblin King sighed. The Sea King was playing with him, as he had known he would. The Goblin King had known the Sea King and had been his ally if not always his friend for as long as he could remember.

"I need your assistance in pulling my dreams from her. Perhaps with the two of us we can manage it."

The Sea King smirked. "Do you really think that? You are the King of Dreams, Jareth, not I. Besides, as I have just said, this is far more interesting. I'm rather curious to watch. I wonder how it must be to have a mortal running around your kingdom that you cannot control and has not been tamed. I greatly look forward to Beltane now."

The Goblin King bit back his anger. The Sea King had become bitter and chaotic after his bride, Agneta, had left him. Jareth had watched the Sea King drag her from above after she refused his favours. He had watched him try and drown the memory of her former life with his music, and it had worked – for a time. He had met Agneta, beautiful but lifeless. She loved the Sea King truly, but only as far as she never remembered her other life. She bore him his seven sons in less than eight years. One day the Sea King let her out of his sight, and she swam too close to the surface. She heard the sounds of life Above and abandoned him and their children, never looking back. She did not love her children so much as she loved her freedom and life without responsibility.

For every day thereafter the Sea King mourned his loss, whether it was overt or not. It was not uncommon for the fae to take humans as lovers. It was rare for them to be taken as wives. Underground or not, humans were still mortal, and to most fae their lifespans were a drop in the bucket and not worth committing to marriage. They'd take humans as play things until they grew weary of them. Cruel and capricious though it may seem, this was the way things had always been. But every human taken was taken by their choice. With either the Right Words or by falling through the cracks Aboveground, they came of their own free will. Agneta had been taken without consent; pulled down into the Sea. The Goblin King had known that Agneta was never really the Sea King's in the first place, but he could not pretend not to understand the other monarch's plight.

Thus the Goblin King remembered his place and did not strike out at the Sea King for his refusal. He bowed low and spoke his thanks and turned to leave, but the Sea King called after him.

"I wouldn't worry too much about it, Goblin King. They will fade from her. But I wonder what she will see before they do?"

The Goblin King opened the top drawer of his desk in his room. The crystal glowed brightly there, and he removed his glove to lay his hand upon it. He allowed himself the indulgence to gaze upon it directly. The sensations of a long ago dance flooded his mind. The way her eyes moved across the room searching for him. Her fear and solace in his arms. The way she took to his movements, perfectly in step with him.

He had never expected such a dream from her, and when it appeared for him in his own crystal, he surprised himself by taking the luxury to enter it. Her reflection of him was still entirely her own, an imagined version of himself visually, but when they danced, he was himself. He could feel her just as she could feel him, and now he was part of it. But as with all dreams, no touch or sight was entirely real, and she felt distant in his arms. He wondered if she could feel the difference.

The Goblin King turned away from the crystal, placing it in his other hand, and tugged his glove back on. He turned his hand to send the crystal back where it belonged, hidden in his study, instead of rolling around in his bedroom desk.

No sooner had he vanished the crystal when he heard a loud banging outside his door. Jareth winced, swearing under his breath and imaging what havoc the Goblins were currently wreaking in his hallway.

He swung open his bedroom door to find one of his more hopeless goblins quite literally throwing himself against a large wooden door next to his. The Goblin King sighed and strode over to the oblivious goblin that seemed intent on concussing himself. The Goblin King lazily hoisted the creature by its tail, tilting his head to stare at it.

"Lickered, is it?" the Goblin King asked the slightly dazed goblin.

"Please no be mad at Lickered, King!"

The Goblin King rolled his eyes. "Now why ever would I be mad at you for creating what could only be taken for the banging of a bloody battle drum?"

"No! Try really hard to get girl attention! Try bring food!"

The Goblin King observed the somewhat banged up tray laying beside the door.

"You're trying to bring Sarah her lunch?" Jareth questioned the goblin.

Lickered nodded his head up and down repeatedly.

Jareth was curious at the current location of Sarah's bedroom. It had certainly not been there the previous evening. There were, in fact, never any rooms in this hallway with the exception of his own. Jareth was not entirely sure he was altogether pleased about this relocation of Sarah's room. He had enough trouble with her dropping into his chambers unannounced when she was on the other side of the castle.

The Goblin King raised the goblin to his eye level. "It's half four now; it is rather late for lunch, is it not, Lickered?"

The goblin cowered, curling into himself as best he could whilst being held by his tail. "I try! I try all afternoon! No open! Never open!"

The Goblin King furrowed his brows in concern. "Did you check the library?"

Lickered nodded furiously. "No there either, but Hilly say saw!"

"Did Hilly say when she saw Sarah? Or perhaps what Sarah would be doing all afternoon that she would miss lunch?" the Goblin King questioned the quivering goblin.

Lickered shook his head, and the Goblin King let him drop to the floor. He brushed his hands off on his pants and strode down the hallway to the library, allowing Lickered to continue throwing himself against Sarah's door as much as he liked.

The Goblin King threw open the door to the library, startling Hilly out of her slumber on one of the half-covered couches.

"Hilly!" the Goblin King called into the expansive library as the little dwarf rushed forward, dusting herself off as best she could to stand before the king.

"Yes, yer Majesty?" Hilly curtsied best she was able.

The Goblin King knelt low to be at eye level with the dwarf.

"The girl who is staying in the castle, Sarah, one of my goblins says you saw her today. Where is she now?"

Hilly's eyes shot around the room nervously. "Yes I saws her. She was in here looking for books. I helped her. That's all. I am the librarian. That's what I do."

The Goblin King's eyes narrowed at Hilly. "What specifically was she looking for? What did you help her with?"

Hilly twisted her long braid in her hands anxiously. "I only saws her for a little while. And I didn't tell her nothing!"

The Goblin King frowned. "Hilly, if you don't tell me where she went I'm sure I can find a place for you outside these castle walls. Perhaps something overlooking the bog?"

Hilly threw her hands up in the air. "I didn't tell her to go! She just went!"

The Goblin King leaned closer to Hilly so that his nose was touching hers. "Hilly. Where did she go?"

Hilly stepped back from the Goblin King's gaze and slammed into a large pile of books, sending them crashing down on top of her. The Goblin King sighed at the now large pile of books where the dwarf once stood and pulled the top book away to reveal Hilly's face.

Hilly sighed defeated. "She wents to the forest, yer Majesty."

The Goblin King's eyes darkened. "Of course she did."

The Goblin King turned to leave.

"Hey! What's about me!" Hilly cried out to him.

The Goblin King waved his arm without turning to face her, and all at once the books re-arranged themselves into another equally large tower, freeing Hilly.

* * *

After his conversation with her at dinner, Jareth had been forced to lock Sarah in her room. It was not his finest moment, he knew, but he needed time to think without her staring at him. He had underestimated what she would make of her dreams and what they would tell her. He appeared himself outside her door as she yelled and banged at the wood. He leaned against the door and slid to the ground, dragging his hands down his face.

He had intended to leave her there. She had done nothing but bring it on herself. She continuously wound him and defied him at every turn. He specifically had told her not to go into the Labyrinth, and yet she went anyway. He told her to leave his parents be, and still she sought their story out. He asked her to drop the subject of his dreams, but she couldn't let it go. She was acting selfishly and had no concept of the matters in which she was so determined to involve herself. He had always known her to be selfish, but foolishly he had forgotten about her cruelty. He could hear her struggle with the door. Crying out, screaming at him – he was perfectly aware of his own cruelty. He pressed his forehead against the door. Every single one of her cries went through him like shards of a crystal. This shouldn't have been the case. He should be able to leave her there but he couldn't. He was certain that she would be the death of him. He turned and pressed his back up against the door and closed his eyes. If only she would stop screaming.

"You can't keep me here forever, you know!" she called out through the wood.

The Goblin King sighed. She was of course right. He couldn't keep her there forever. He touched the wood gently. He just needed more time. Things were not at all going as he had planned when he brought Sarah here. He had hoped she would allow herself time here before making such demands of him. That she could adjust to life in the Underground and see all it had to offer her. Unfortunately his own dreams had betrayed them, clinging to her and teasing. With anyone else he might have managed to keep them from believing too strongly in their images, but not with Sarah. Not the ever curious, defiant Sarah. His parents and the future they'd crafted for themselves and the rest of both worlds was not only beyond his control, but none of Sarah's concern. Their true story was something few Underground inhabitants knew, and most of those denizens were bound by word to his Kingdom.

The banging had been stopped for a while now, and Jareth got up to leave. He would open her door for her in the morning and tell her what he felt he had to in order to keep the peace.

Jareth entered his room and sat down at his desk. He glanced over his shoulder at the moon and observed it was nearly full.

"Perhaps in time for Beltane," he mused before turning the page in his book.

After more than an hour Jareth felt his eyes begin to drop and decided it was time to retire. No sooner had he stood then he felt it. It was like someone had grabbed his chest and pulled all the air from him.

Someone had destroyed a piece of his magic. He touched his pendant and he felt it there. The crystal, his crystal, had been broken. Jareth clenched his fists in anger. He knew who had done it too. She had no right, and he would not permit this in his castle. She had pushed him too far this time.


	13. Chapter 13

"Sarah," he spoke while stepping forward, his boot crushing the last piece of crystal.

She stood up slowly, her eyes never leaving his face. His never leaving hers. She was caught. Sarah was put in mind of the animal kingdom, the way predator and prey would stare each other down before fight or flight.

She stepped towards him. Fight. She would not run.

"Jareth," she replied, her voice steadier than she'd anticipated.

He glanced down at the remaining shards of crystal beneath his heel.

"You have shattered my crystal."

"Yes," was her singular reply.

He lifted her hand and turned over to her palm, which was now bleeding properly.

"Tell me, Sarah, what did you see when you looked into it?"

Sarah swallowed thickly. She could lie. She could always lie. But something told her that he knew exactly what she had seen. She could pretend – and so could he – that it was nothing. That nothing had happened and that he would send her back to bed and that would be that. There would be nothing.

But what if?

"I saw myself."

"Yes." His grip on her hand tightened.

"We are enemies." She spoke almost as a question. Ever since he had appeared in her bedroom some nights ago, she was unclear on the truth of this statement. Once upon a time, perhaps.

He said nothing in response. Tracing around her cut with the tips of his fingers. He was not healing her like the night before. He was touching her purely to lay hands on her.

"We are enemies," she continued, "but…you searched for me."

She watched him as her blood covered his fingers.

"Why did you do that? You hated me. We hated each other." She jerked her hand away from his, but he was expecting this and held tightly to her wrist. She tried to lash out with her free hand, but he grabbed that just as easily as he held the other.

"I am the Goblin King, Sarah." He spoke calmly, but she could see from the way that he was looking at her that he was anything but.

"If you didn't hate me then how would you recognize me? I have been kind. Allowing you to burn with the desire for revenge instead of just desire. You received the better end, I can assure you."

He dropped her wrists and turned from her.

"You were a ghost. Always there but … out of my reach. And I was haunted by the absence of you. The absence of peace in dreams, the absence of your name and face in my memory, the absence of your presence. Knowing of you but never knowing you."

"I'm sorry. I should not have come here tonight."

"No," he replied sharply, "you shouldn't have."

She nodded and turned to make her way to the door when he stopped her, grabbing her by the wrist and pulling her back.

"So why did you?"

"I didn't mean to," she answered quickly before realizing how it sounded.

He raised one brow coolly. "Oh you didn't?"

Sarah bit her lip, regretting the choice of words. "I didn't realize that my room was directly over your study. I didn't know that's where I'd land."

"It's not." Jareth answers. "In fact, your room seems to be newly positioned in this castle. Directly next to mine."

Her eyebrows shot up at this new information. She'd been in such a daze before dinner that she hadn't noticed the change of location, running directly into her room without thinking about where it should or shouldn't be.

"I didn't move it," she responded to his unasked question.

Jareth raised a brow. "Well I certainly didn't place it there. My private quarters are just that. Private. Rooms should not be able to move into or out of their proximity like the rest of the castle shifts."

"Unless you decide otherwise," she pointed out to him. "You must have moved my room without realizing it."

Jareth scoffed. "Hardly. I haven't even been in the castle most of the day."

"Well neither have I," she responded defensively.

"No," he agreed crossly. "You were busy doing exactly the opposite of what I asked you to do, gallivanting around in the Labyrinth and the Forest of Eternal Night."

He grabbed her arm and pulled her body against his. He pulled her hair up from the back of her head and gently touched the large bump that had already formed there. "I suppose that is where you got this as well."

Sarah was caught slightly off guard, not anticipating him grabbing her the way he had. She was vaguely aware that this was the closest she'd ever been to him. His breathing was much more steady than hers a fact that unnerved her slightly.

It was perhaps a second too long before she sharply jerked herself out of his grasp.

"Yes. I hit my head."

"Then you fell asleep," Jareth finished for her.

"I wouldn't exactly call it sleeping, but yes. I was unconscious," she replied.

"This is where you learned of my conversation with the Wiseman." He flicked his wrist, and a crystal appeared there, lighting the dark room with its glow.

"Yes," she answered, seeing no point in denying it given he knew she'd seen what his last crystal held.

"You have pried into my dreams Sarah."

The crystal began to flit with passing images of the ballroom masquerade.

"That was my dream." Her voice came out harsher than she had intended.

"No." He snapped his hand closed, vanishing the crystal from view. "It was mine too."

Sarah closed her eyes. He had turned to avoid her eyes. She could not even look at his back/the back of his head when she spoke now.

"I didn't remember…but as soon as I saw-

_Herself, the crystal ballroom, him chasing her and searching for her…_

…everything, there they were again."

She felt certain he had turned back towards her. Watching her with his impossibly severe stare.

"My own dreams. Of you."

She opened her eyes to find he was, indeed, looking at her.

"For years, I just assumed I'd stopped dreaming. Or at least being able to remember them. It was about ten years ago, shortly after my 18th birthday. I used to have these incredibly vivid, colourful dreams. Mostly about the Labyrinth. I suppose that when my memories went, they took my dreams with them."

"No," Jareth answered. "Your dreams were always there. Buried in your mind."

Sarah swallowed thickly. "They were always of you. I couldn't remember you. I didn't know your name. I'd see you, parts of you – your eyes or your hands. I asked you so many times for your name."

"That was not me."

"No." She spoke softly. "Nor was that me in your dreams."

"Perhaps…but perhaps not." He was still looking at her. Waiting to see how she would respond to all of this.

"I understand why I might have dreamt of you…" A small smirk appeared on his face, and she rolled her eyes. "Memories gone or not, it's hard to completely forget something or someone as other as you."

Jareth smirked in earnest and tilted his head, pleased.

"But what I don't understand," Sarah continued, "is why you dreamt of me."

The smirk vanished from Jareth's face, and his eyes grew dark.

"It was not a choice."

Sarah remembered the way he had appeared in his dreams. Desperate and tormented, searching Above and Underground.

"I am the King; you should never have been able to touch my memory of you."

Sarah hesitated before speaking. "In your dream, in the crystal, the Wiseman said he thought I did this."

"Yes," he responded evenly.

"But how could I have?" she asked, searching his face for the answers he refused to give her.

"Jareth, why won't you tell me? I know…I know we're not enemies. But I can't trust you. I want to believe you have good intentions, but you tell me nothing. About things that concern me. Things which I have a right to know about. Do you have any idea how hard that makes it for me? I want to be happy while I'm here, but I can't be when you keep everything from me."

Jareth did not speak right away.

"I do not know," he finally answered. "Not exactly, at least. Somehow you had banished the Labyrinth from your life, and therefore you were banished from mine. But however strong your banishment was it was not nearly as strong as your soul's pull to these lands. For no matter how much your mind wanted to forget, your heart would not let it. You are tied to these lands, Sarah. You have been since the first time you set foot in the Underground. It is a part of you."

He sighed deeply and continued.

"When I pulled you from the Sea of Dreams two days ago, I drenched you in my dreams. Two people cannot touch in the sea without merging their dreams. I never went into the Sea as you did, so instead you simply were submerged in my dreams. Now when you sleep, you are reliving my moments. But your dreams and mine have long since become knotted and tangled. I am not like the other creatures you encountered in the Labyrinth. I am a creature of dreams but also the King of dreams. Therefore when you tried to eradicate yourself from my mind, it was incomplete. Whenever you thought of me I in turn would receive the barest flashes of a girl whose face I could not see and whose name I did not know. A scratch of faded lipstick and a ring. Ten years of having something just beyond your grasp."

He turned from her and left to stand on the balcony. She followed him, her knotted sheets still dangling from her window.

"I'm sorry." She touched his arm gently.

He jerked his arm away from her touch. "Such a pointless phrase."

Now she was angry. Counter to the Wiseman's belief, there was no way this could possibly be her fault.

"Hey! Do you think I don't know how it feels? I went through it too, Jareth! I had ten years of feeling like I was losing something. Every day I would wake up and feel like I had forgotten something so important. Something I needed to find but never knowing what it was. Then you show up, one bite of a peach and it's thrown at me like a ton of bricks. Before I even have time to digest that you're carting me off back to the Underground to what? Study me? I asked you point blank what I was doing here!"

She started to stomp off, but he pulled her wrists up to stop her. This time however, she was prepared. She pulled herself away from him, her hand brushing against his cheek in the process. The blood from her cut staining his face.

"I told you what you were doing here." He tried to wipe the blood off his face, smearing it further across his cheek.

"You wanted to know how I did it," she realized and moved to stand further back from him.

"No," he replied firmly. "I wanted you here."

Sarah took a breath, trying to steady herself. She considered him as he stood in front of her. All in black with the moon at his back and her blood on his face. She needed to know.

"Jareth," she spoke calmly, "are you – were you, in love with me?"

Jareth stared at her darkly. She feared she had crossed a line now, but she needed to know.

"What do I know of love?" He began to slowly walk towards her never taking his eyes from hers. "I know only of dark hair vanishing behind every corner. Of faded lipstick on stepping stones. Of half eaten peaches and a shattering ballroom."

He cupped her face with his blood-stained gloves.

"I do not know of love, Sarah, I know only of you. And once again, you ask too much of me."

The thumb of his other hand softly grazes over her bottom lip.

"So do you love me Sarah?"

She found herself slightly breathless. She knew if he wanted to, he could make her forget. A little bit closer, and she might allow herself…

"No."

The barest hint of a smile crossed his face.

"As it should be."

He dropped her face from his hands and turned his back to her but didn't move. She figured that to be her cue to leave and turned to go when he suddenly caught her by the hand.

He took each of the fingers of his glove in his mouth pulling it off slowly. He turned her palm towards him and softly ran his fingers over the large gash. It vanished, leaving only a scarred-over mark. He brought her healed palm up to his mouth and placed the softest of kisses on the scar.

The jolt she felt the previous evening when he had touched her without his gloves returned. Sarah hoped that it was just a reaction to his kind and nothing else. She bowed her head to hide her flush and smiled to herself. It was less of a shock this time and more of a grab that pulled her forward as she laid her now healed palm on his chest. She tipped up to kiss him softly on the cheek in thanks, being careful not to take it too far.

But she realized he was not used to this manner of affection and was unfamiliar with her action. So when she tried to graze him softly with her lips he jerked his head towards hers, and she stopped dead. They were much too close now, and there was really nowhere else to go.

There was something about lines and not crossing them, she was almost sure. Yet, she lingered, a second too long. She wanted to step back. She wanted to walk back into her room and crawl into her bed. But oh, oh how she didn't. So she lingered, and he took his opportunity and kissed her. Not on the cheek, and not chastely, or even unchastely. For she had been kissed before but never this. He kissed her to leave a mark. So that she would never forget the feel of his lips on hers, the way he bit her bottom lip and brought his hand up to run through her hair. This was consumption. He would swallow her whole in that once moment so that she would never escape.

So she did the only thing she could do, in the face of something so dangerous. Determined to save whatever she could of herself, or take him down with her, she kissed him right back. With the same ferocity, the same hunger and need. She would leave the mark of her kiss on him as well. So then at least they would be marked together.

She grabbed him closer, and he pulled her deeper. This was a war now. Neither sure which side the other was playing from. Which party would break first, call surrender and come for air? But they were both too stubborn, so the war continued, perhaps a little longer than it should have or was decent, and when they broke, they broke together. Heady and breathless, panting and flushed. Staring each other down, trying very hard to be mindful of their next move.

"You took that," she said as evenly as possible.

"It was offered," he answered simply.

"You always did have trouble distinguishing between the two."

He stared at her, and she knew he was giving her the chance to run if she wanted it. To react with anger, shout and yell to storm off to her room. Fight or flight.

"You have blood on your face, Your Majesty," is all she replied.

"As do you, Sarah," he responded, and she smiled.

She reached up and touched the now-dried remainder of her blood on his cheek, lightly scraping it away with her fingernails. She was careful not to scratch him and watched the blood fall off in flakes.

He touched the mark of her blood on her own face.

"You look how you did the first night I saw you."

The Goblin King raised an eyebrow expectantly.

"I remember, the moon was incredibly bright then, too. You were covered in black, and I wasn't afraid of you. Not then." She stroked his cheek gently now, not bothering with the rest of the blood.

"I was frightening," he responded with a bit of disbelief in his voice.

"No, I mean maybe. But not to me. Not then at least, I was scared but mostly of what was to come. Although I didn't appreciate the snake."

He laughed.

"It was only a scarf you know."

"Yes, but I didn't know that at the time!" She laughed earnestly.

He hadn't given her everything, but at least he had given her something. Hopefully soon he would be willing to tell her more, but she knew like most other things in the Labyrinth, this would be hard won. She would try and be patient. She could feel the difference now, a lightness that hadn't been present before. This was curious given what had just transpired between them. She had been right when she said she didn't love him, but given the all the relationships in her life, she wasn't entirely sure she was capable of it at all. So they'd given each other what they had to offer.

"I'm going to bed now." She smiled to show that it is a simply because she is tired and not for any other reason.

He nodded and walked her to the door of the study. He vanished the wood easily with a flick of his wrist.

"Goodnight and thank you, Jareth."

"Sarah," he started, and she paused at the doorway. He stared at her momentarily. "Perhaps, you can come to trust me."

"It is a start, Jareth." And she meant it.


	14. Chapter 14

Sarah woke the next morning to a veritable downpour. She sighed deeply, walking over to her window. The rain was coming down hard and in heavy drops. It seemed as though today was going to be an inside event. She turned from the window and found to her great pleasure that her clothes had come in overnight. She smiled, grateful as what remained of her initial wardrobe was currently lying in a heap, completely tattered.

Sarah walked over to examine the clothes and couldn't help letting out a gasp. They were not at all like she expected. She had assumed that there would just be clothes similar, if not a little bit fancier than, what she had been wearing over the last couple of days, but this was not the case. Dresses upon dresses hung in the wardrobe whose back now seemed to go on almost forever. She was fairly certain that should she have stepped in the wardrobe she could have reached Narnia. Or possibly Above, given where she was right now. She had promised thirteen weeks, and it seemed she would never have to wear the same dress twice in all that time. Sarah was astonished by the thought that these had all been created in only a couple of days.

The dresses themselves did not seem to hold to any particular era or style, though each one was incredibly gorgeous. There were dresses with bustles, there were simple empire waists sheaths, and there were extravagant gowns with what appeared to be jewels sown into them. The necklines ranged from high to so low they made Sarah blush. The length was mostly consistent, reaching her ankles. These were dresses fit for a queen.

She noticed that the Goblin King had also seen fit to give her a few extra pairs of shoes, including a set that looked as though they were made from the crystal he so easily manipulated. Mostly, however, she found she had been given boots like the pair she'd been wearing the last few days and simple, but lovely, flats. This suited Sarah fine as it was clear the Labyrinth was not designed for fancy footwear.

Much to Sarah's immense pleasure, however, she saw that she had now been given a few pairs of pants. She loved the idea of gorgeous dresses in a fantasy land, but in actuality they had been more of a pain than anything else. Her jeans were dreadfully missed. Eager to examine them, she pulled a pair down and found that these were nothing like her jeans.

"There is no way I'm wearing these."

The pants were neutral in colour and had to have been sewn by the same tailor as the Goblin King's as they were clearly designed to be worn just as tight. Sarah shoved the pants back into the wardrobe deciding she could hopefully reason with Jareth a bit on their fit. Just because he felt the need to show the world every curve and contour did not mean she had to as well. Sarah decided that they were to be shelved for now, until she absolutely needed them.

Most of the dresses appeared very intimidating both in their luxury and their handling. Sarah had no idea how she would get into or out of most of them.

Sarah decided on a dress within reach that seemed relatively simple. The color was a pale gray that shimmered in the light. The fabric seemed to be velvet at first glance, but as Sarah touched it, the gown slid through her fingers like water and moved unlike any velvet she had ever known. The sleeves reached her wrists, and an additional bell sleeve started at her mid-forearm and reached her knees in length. The neckline was decent, keeping her modesty with a simple square neck with small embroidery at the top. Thankfully, Sarah was able to pull the dress over her head without having to worry about ties and beads. It was warm, but not so warm the fabric could not breathe. Sarah was thankful for the warmth as the draft from the rain had made her room awfully chilly.

Sarah used the bobby pins and hair ties on her desk to pull her hair up into a bun. Her hair did not react particularly well with moisture, and she wanted it kept tame. She added a few of the extravagantly-designed hair pins that had appeared on her dresser overnight as well. When she glanced at herself in the mirror she was quite startled to see how elegant she appeared. She looked like she belonged. She looked like a queen.

Sarah shook her head, pushing the ridiculous thought from her mind. It was the dress, nothing more.

Sarah opened her door to find that a tray of breakfast had been laid there. It was clearly from one of the goblins as most of the food was scattered and falling off the tray. Sarah smiled, and pulled the tray inside her room to eat, not realizing just how hungry she was. She hadn't eaten much over the last couple days, and her stomach knew it.

After she finished eating, Sarah decided to investigate if there was any equally extravagant jewellery to accompany her new wardrobe. She placed the tray on her bed and wandered over to jewellery box on her vanity. She didn't get the chance to open it, however, before something shiny on the floor caught her eye. She reached down and carefully picked up a crystal.

"This wasn't here last night…" Sarah thought to herself as the crystal glowed brightly.

Sarah tried to look inside of it but found it opaque. The crystal suddenly grew hot and on instinct Sarah dropped it to the floor, not wanting to burn her hands. The crystal started rolling out her door, which she'd accidentally left slightly ajar when she grabbed her breakfast.

"Wait!" Sarah called out before running after the crystal.

Sarah chased the crystal through the castle and out the grand doors into the Goblin City. She did not think much of disobeying the Goblin King yet again as the crystal could have only been sent by him in the first place. The rain beat heavily upon her as she followed the crystal past the Goblin City and into the Labyrinth. Every time she thought she lost it, the crystal would appear again from behind a corner as if encouraging her to keep up.

Sarah chased the crystal for more than an hour and was completely soaked to the bone as she wandered through the stone maze, having lost it once again.

"Goblin King, this is really getting old! What do you want from me?" she shouted to the sky in the hopes that he might hear her.

"I think that is what they would call, a loaded question, my dear."

Sarah spun around towards the speaker.

"You."

"Me," the Wiseman answered with a chuckle.

He was holding the crystal in both his hands. There now appeared to be images taking shape within but, Sarah couldn't make out any of the forms.

"You sent me chasing after that crystal!" she shouted, annoyed at herself for having been so easily drawn out. "And it's raining!" she added in the vain hope of making him feel bad for having led her chasing crystals in the cold.

"You don't care for the rain? I quite enjoy it. Washes away the messes."

"No, I don't," Sarah answered sulkily. It was then she noticed that the Wiseman's bird hat was missing.

"Your hat is gone."

"Yes, my fine feathered friend – much like yourself, my drenched dear – does not fancy the rain. He has taken shelter in a dryer locale." The Wiseman patted his completely bald head sadly. "What a coward."

A loud clap of thunder sounded, and immediately following, a large bolt of lightning lit up the sky.

"Why did you send me your crystal?" Sarah asked while wiping some of the rain from her face.

"Yes, you do appear quite the queen now," the Wiseman answered, tucking the crystal away in his pocket.

Sarah tensed at his words. "That's not what I asked."

"No, but it is what you were wondering, and I think," the Wiseman paused, holding up an overlong finger in front of her face, "that now, Queen, you taste of King."

Sarah's cheeks burned, and she touched her lips softly. She didn't wonder how he knew, for the Wiseman seemed to be above even the King in his understanding of the Underground and the Labyrinth.

Sarah straightened her shoulders and tried to appear as poised as possible. Right words, right role, rain or no rain.

"Then as your queen, I ask that you tell me why you sent your crystal for me."

The Wiseman laughed and withdrew his pipe from his sleeve. The rain appeared to have no effect on its fire.

"I did not say my queen. I said only, 'a queen'. Queen of what, I think, is still an unasked question."

Sarah huffed and relaxed her posture again. Clearly pretending to be something she was not would get her nowhere here. She pulled one of the ornate pins from her hair and held it towards the Wiseman.

"Then perhaps a trade?"

The Wiseman raised his brows, intrigued.

"A trade of what, young queen?"

"My hair pin for your information."

Sarah pulled another of her clips from her hair, feeling a few of the strands come loose to frame her face.

"A second for the crystal."

The Wiseman considered the pins in her hands for a moment before reaching out and snatching them from her.

"A deal you have then. Now, what is it you'd like to know?"

Sarah smiled; she did not doubt that the Wiseman's deal would extend only so far as he wished it, but the crystal alone was worth it.

"Tell me why you sent me chasing after one of your crystals."

The Wiseman clapped his hands together. "A pointless question but one you seem insistent on. So I'll answer two instead: To help you find your way back here. You were always coming, but I thought I'd…guide you a bit."

Sarah regarded the Wiseman with interest. She had been intending to visit him after what she had learned from the Goblin King's dreams. To see why the Wiseman believed that she was the cause of the magic that had taken hers, and everyone in the Underground save for his, memories. But she had decided against it due to the rain. Evidently the Wiseman wanted to see her none the less.

"What was the second question?" Sarah asked carefully.

"A question that you haven't yet needed to ask but will shortly," the Wiseman offered, leaning forward in his chair and surveying her under his bushy brows. "But a simple, 'why,' I should think."

Sarah's eyes narrowed at the Wiseman's gaze. "You can see into the future then?"

The Wiseman laughed and leaned back into his chair again. "I simply read. What's written is written. That is not the future, rather history in disguise."

Sarah rolled her eyes. She saw no point asking him to explain that further as she knew that he would only lead her in circles.

"Can you tell me why you think I'm responsible for the memory spell that has affected both myself and the Labyrinth?"

The Wiseman pulled the crystal from his pocket. "You're quite sure, then?"

Sarah stared at the now-glowing crystal. She was certain there were figures moving inside now.

"What's in it?" she asked.

"Something I've kept a close hold on," the Wiseman whispered slowly. He held the crystal out in his palm. "Do you want it?"

Sarah nodded once and took it. Its glow faded as soon as it touched her hands, and the figures disappeared from sight.

"It's gone," she said morosely.

"It will be back," the Wiseman offered, "when the time is right."

Another loud clap of thunder shook the earth as the lightning followed.

"When will that be?" Sarah asked, impatient.

The Wiseman stuck out his tongue and caught a drop of rain on it.

"Well certainly not now, in this middle of this storm. Perhaps it's time you headed back to the castle."

Just as Sarah turned her head to watch another bolt of lightning streak the sky, she found herself back in the castle in the middle of her room.

Sarah sighed in exasperation. Just once, she'd like someone to ask her permission before transporting her somewhere.

Sarah walked over and placed the crystal inside her now full jewellery box. The jewels must have arrived along with the clothing. She picked up an ornate sapphire necklace and watched the light dance through it. Sarah sighed and placed the necklace carefully back inside the box. She tried not to think too hard at the amount of precious gems inside, nervous at the thought of wearing them, even for a short time. They were not meant for her; she didn't even own a pair of diamond earrings back home. How could she possibly wear a necklace that was worth more than her entire apartment?

She stripped her dress off and pulled her hair down so it could dry. She threw the wet garment over the door of the wardrobe, hoping it wasn't dry clean only. She made a mental note to try and stop going through clothes so quickly while she was here, else she might actually need all the dresses in her closet.

She pulled a dark, elegant blue gown from the middle of the rack and stared at it appreciatively. It was a beautiful dress, simple like the grey one, but with more of an imperial look to it. This fabric did not move as fluidly as the grey gown, but rather with strength. The lower neckline and narrower sleeves, along with the beading at the waist and bust, gave a much more renaissance feel to its design as opposed to the grey dress' medieval style. It had a smattering of glitter underneath the fabric which shone as it hit the light. Its fastenings were also slightly more complex, and Sarah decided to give the accompanying corset a try while she waited for the crystal.

Sarah pulled the corset from the wardrobe and moved to stand in front of the mirror to see what she was doing. She vaguely remembered helping her mother tie her corset for one of her performances backstage. Before she had run off to New York and was still doing local theatre. She tried to let her hands remember the work of the lacings and was surprised that she was more or less capable of tying it up. "More or less" because, she realized as she finished and pulled the blue dress over her head, that the corset was much too tight. She couldn't bend as well as she'd assumed she could. She turned to look at herself in the mirror before making an attempt to undo the dress, and despite her wet hair, this dress absolutely looked as though it were made for her. It complimented her perfectly, and as she moved, she had the impression of wearing the night sky itself.

Sarah suddenly felt as though she couldn't breathe and struggled to pull the dress and the corset from her. Her hands undid the back of the dress and she began to pull on the strings but in her panic, only made them more knotted, until they were impossible to undo.

"Help!" she cried out to no one and anyone who was listening. "Help! I need help in here!"

There was a shift in the air of the room and she looked in the mirror to find the Goblin King standing behind her. He was staring at her quite intensely and Sarah closed her eyes groaning to herself. Anyone but him.

"You look…"

"Don't," she held up a hand to stop him, turning from the mirror to face him. "If you say Queenly, I swear I will -"

The Goblin King smirked and took in her form appreciatively. "I was actually going to say stuck."

Sarah cursed under her breath. Of course he was. Queens' hair doesn't drip all over their expensive dresses while they claw at the back trying to get out.

"Whatever, it doesn't matter. I'm fine."

He tilted his head in askance considering her. "Are you now? I was under the impression you needed assistance."

"No," she replied quickly. "I'm good."

"Alright, if you insist."

The Goblin King shrugged and turned to leave. Sarah shook her head and inwardly grumbled a number of choice expletives.

"Wait," she said as quietly as possible.

Jareth turned back towards her and leaned against her doorframe.

"Yes?" he asked.

"I need your help," she spat out grudgingly.

He raised a brow. "What do you require help with, dear Sarah?"

Sarah's eyes shot daggers at his amused face. "You're really going to make me say it?"

"Use your right words," Jareth smirked at her.

Sarah sighed deeply and closed her eyes so she wouldn't have to see the smug look on his face. "Jareth, would you please help me out of my dress."

"It would be my pleasure," he responded.

"I'm sure," Sarah muttered.

She heard Jareth laugh at her retort, and she smiled in spite of herself. Sarah stepped forward, allowing Jareth to undo the back of her dress.

"Lift your arms," he whispered softly in her ear. She did as he commanded, and he pulled the blue gown from her frame.

He then began to work at the ties of the corset. Sarah kept the front firmly pinned to her with her hands so there would be no 'accidental' uncoverings. She purposely ignored the voice in the back of her head that reminded her that this was the second time he would be seeing her in such a state of undress.

Jareth pulled at the knots effortlessly, his deft hands working through the lacings quickly.

"You've done this before." Sarah looked back at him, and he glanced up while continuing to untie her.

"Most of the women here wear corsets as I'm sure you'll recall."

"Yes, but the men don't."

"Sarah, I am not putting you into the corset, I am taking you out of it. Something at which I can assure you I am very adept."

He ran his hand over her now bare shoulder, and she couldn't hold back a bit of a shiver. He smiled wickedly.

"And just how many corsets have you undone?" she asked, glimpsing back at him.

Jareth raised his brows in interest.

"Quite a question Sarah" the Goblin King smirked slightly. "Enough that I could easily undo you in complete darkness, with only one hand, while my other hand and attention was occupied…elsewhere."

Sarah's cheeks blushed faintly. She had no doubt as to his abilities; his kiss the previous evening had proven that. She tried to keep her mind racing and imagining the particular details of this thought.

He ran a gloved finger slowly up her spine.

"I have undone you Sarah."

She whirled to face him, still tightly holding onto the front of her corset.

"Yes, it would appear so…thank you."

She knew she appeared faintly flustered but was pleased to notice a stir of something behind his features as well.

His wicked smile had returned, and he nodded once. "You are quite welcome. As I said, it was my pleasure." He took in her appearance again, this time much slower than before.

Sarah simply rolled her eyes, amused. She knew he was hoping to provoke her into blushing further and becoming more flustered. She had the brief idea of playing with a bit of fire - making him regret his frustrating confidence, and turn the tables on him. She allowed the corset to slip slightly under her fingers. Showing a slight bit more skin than was decent.

Sarah caught the look of quick look of surprise on his face and smiled triumphantly. She sauntered over leisurely and gracefully touching his cheek with her palm. She tilted her head and let out a slow breath.

"I'm quite sure it was," she whispered into his ear softly before turning on her heel and walking into her bathroom. She made sure to drop the corset just before she entered. Two could play at that game.

Sarah relaxed taking a long bath, laughing and imagining Jareth's face when she'd lowered her corset. She avoided thinking about the feeling of his hands on her back and on her shoulders. She simply enjoyed the victory she'd earned and completely forgot about her previous conversation with the Wiseman.

She stepped out of the bath and wrapped herself in her robe. She thought about getting dressed again, but she wasn't feeling too confident in the gowns right now. She didn't need another excuse for the Goblin King to undress her. Suddenly those extremely tight pants were looking more and more appealing. Sarah pulled them from the wardrobe to look them over again and stared at them distastefully. She shut them back in the dresser and decided that as long as she didn't leave her room, she was better off just sitting in her robe for the time being.

Sarah noticed that it had stopped raining and walked over to the window. The sky was still overcast, but she couldn't deny the Wiseman was right; the Labyrinth did look refreshed after the storm.

A faint glow caught the corner of her eye and she turned towards the source. She found a bright light coming from the edges of her jewellery box. Between getting into and out of the corset she'd forgotten about the crystal. She pulled it out of the box to see it was not only glowing, but pulsating slightly. The figures within had returned.

Sarah held the crystal carefully in both hands, making sure not to drop it. She sat down on her bed and looked within it. The world dissolved around her as she held tightly to the crystal.


	15. Chapter 15

Sarah sat at the vanity in her room, carefully brushing out her long, dark locks. Most of her important things had been packed away in boxes. What was left looked exactly like a child's bedroom, with no teenaged things to offset the immaturity of the figurines and children's books.

Sarah gently picked up the figure that had sat on her desk since her eighth birthday. She had smashed it in two after her return some three years ago but recently decided to repair it and return it to its rightful place on her desk. Looking at it now, she could only see the Goblin King, but it had been a gift from her mother, and considering the correspondence with her had been getting steadily worse over the years, she thought she should treasure what motherly pieces of her she had.

Sarah knew that her decision to split the figurine in two was childish and in bad form. It was not as if he had succeeded, after all. She still didn't believe his testament that he had been doing everything for her, but at least he had lived up to his end of the bargain. She had repaired the statue earlier that year, ostensibly as a reminder of what was almost so easily lost with a few careless words. Another part of Sarah whispered that she had repaired it because it was tied to the Labyrinth and therefore the world over there.

Sarah sucked in a breath as she closed her eyes and tried to remember the feel of the wind on her face there. The way the sun had felt so warm, but never hot, the dewy smell of the trees and the forest, and how everything seemed to shine as though it was covered in a very fine layer of glitter - knowing that everything could change and be turned upside down at a moment's notice. She missed it more than she could possibly say. Thirteen hours meant nothing when she had spent nearly every hour since then restless and dreaming of the Labyrinth.

The brush of blonde hair against her cheek.

" _It's further than you think, and time is short"_

No.

She opened her eyes.

Not him. Never him.

She was supposed to be older and wiser now. A childish part of her felt cheated. She was always told she'd understand when she got older. She would be told when she got older. Maybe when she was older it would be clearer. Older, older, older. Well, this was her eighteenth birthday. She was officially an adult and therefore supposedly privy to the world of knowing. Of understanding and being told things. In fact the truth was, she never felt like she knew and understood less.

There was the Labyrinth and the Goblin Kingdom and everything else that world encompassed. Except when there wasn't. Except when she would talk to her family or her peers or her teachers. There was her future to be had and her entire life that stretched before her. The world at her fingertips. Except that there wasn't. Except that she was so unclear about what kind of future she could even predict for herself at this point when all she could see was the Labyrinth. She would get married and have children. Except lately all her dreams were of masked balls, golden hair and gloved fingertips. Every part of it felt more and more real, and she woke with the image of mismatched eyes and a cruel smirk burned into her.

She had a mother and father who loved her – most of the time. She was clever and could go far in the world – if she could keep her head out of the clouds. She was quite pretty, and boys liked her – except they only ever seemed to think she was pretty. She was smart, pretty and from a white, middle class, suburban family; life was going to be easy for her. That was what she'd been told; that was what she'd always, always been told. But oh, how it just wasn't what it seemed.

What Sarah really knew, she knew if she really desperately needed it, that there was always another way. A thought she clung to everyday. Even if she never used it, at least it was there. At least there was more.

Sarah opened the bottom drawer of her vanity and took out her now well-worn copy of  _The Labyrinth_. She ran her finger over the familiar gold lettering. Sarah had not read it aloud since her journey. She wasn't even sure if simply saying the words alone would work anymore, not that it would be Toby she'd be wishing away. Sarah would often, re-read it to herself and make note of everything that wasn't in the book. Just so she'd know, every time she doubted, that it was real.

Sarah stood up from her desk and locked the door of her room. She knew her father and stepmother were planning on having her cake soon, and she didn't need them walking in unexpectedly and telling her to come downstairs. Her father and stepmother had gingerly asked her whether or not there was anyone she'd like to invite over for dinner and cake, but as usual there was no one.

Sarah had a few friends growing up, but they were never as close to her as they were to each other. By the time she'd reached her sixteenth birthday they had cut her out altogether. They said she had gotten "weird," and maybe she had. She knew things they would never know, and that separated them. But it wasn't just her friends; her teachers, with whom she'd always been on good terms, stopped calling on her in class. Her work was often graded much more harshly than anyone else's, and they were much colder with her than the other students. Even her own father began to pull away from her, spending more time out with Karen or taking Toby on "father-son" days. When they did spend time together, Sarah felt it was strained and unlike how it used to be. The only one who treated her as if she was a whole person at all was Toby. Sarah loved the kid, and he loved her back. He would beg for her stories and her attention, which Sarah was happy to give. He may have only been three, but it was nice to feel genuinely wanted by someone.

Sarah did have a few boyfriends in her last couple years of school – even the kids who openly disliked her had to admit she was pretty. So she'd gone on a few dates, kissed a few boys and learned some lessons. The hardest of all being the clear fact that these boys desired her affections but never her attentions. They would become obsessed with her, sending her love notes and promising her the moon, as long as she kept kissing them. When she would try and talk to them, or create something resembling a normal relationship, they would pull away, avoiding her completely.

Once when she was having a particularly hard day she had asked Hoggle about it. She asked him why nobody seemed to want to be around her at all and whether or not it had anything to do with the Labyrinth. Hoggle had hemmed and hawed but eventually told her that it was the mark of the Underground. She'd been Underground, she'd eaten their food and traversed the land. She would always seem a bit off to everyone else. Sarah had asked if there was anyone else who had returned with a similar mark, and Hoggle had been even more reluctant to answer this inquiry. He told Sarah that she was the only human he knew to eat the food of the Underground and then return Above, and he'd lived a long life and seen a lot of humans in the Labyrinth.

It had been a surprisingly hard idea to accept, that she might be spending her life relatively alone, but the more Sarah thought about it, the more at peace with it she became. She didn't get lonely, and she preferred spending most of her time her herself anyways. She could manage just fine on her own.

Sarah sat down at the mirror in front of the vanity again and closed her eyes. She found it worked better when her eyes were closed. She spoke softly but clearly so that she could be heard.

"I need you. I need you today. My friends, please come."

Sarah opened her eyes slowly and found there was no one staring back at her in the mirror. This wasn't altogether unusual as her friends did have lives of their own, but she knew they would be coming as soon as they could. Hoggle had been telling her about a particularly nasty fairy infestation that had flown in from the east that he was trying to deal with, and Sir Didymus wouldn't leave the Bog unless he could be sure Ambrosius was on top guard dog form. Ludo meanwhile was in the middle of helping to re-build much of the Goblin City and the surrounding area. His rock calling skills were unique within the Labyrinth, and they had proven a great asset to the Kingdom.

Sarah decided to wait it out by putting the last of her things in boxes. She was leaving for college in less than two days, and she was almost completely ready. Everything that wasn't going to college with her would be placed in storage up in the attic, donated to charity or left in her room to gather dust. Karen had made it quite clear to Sarah that she was to have as few things in her room as possible to keep it from becoming cluttered. She was still trying to figure out where the last of her childhood mementos would be placed. Her musical posters and Escher print were going with her, the stuffed animals to Toby, and her old clothes would be going to charity. Sarah was just placing her old music box in the keep pile when she heard someone behind her clearing their throat.

Sarah gently placed the music box down and spun around, beaming. This was the birthday party she was really looking forward to.

"Oh," Sarah said, disappointed, "it's you."

The Wiseman and his bird sat cheerily in her mirror. She had been visited by the Wiseman a few times since her trip through the Labyrinth but normally alongside one of her friends. Rarely did he come on his own.

"Are you unhappy to see me then?" The Wiseman cheerily replied.

"No!" Sarah hurriedly answered. "Of course not! I'm just a bit surprised is all."

"I told you she doesn't want us here, and you said there would be cake. I see no cake."

"Would you shut up! The cake is later," the Wiseman retorted, annoyed at his hat. "Your friends are a bit…tied up at the moment, but they will be on their way shortly. I wanted to come ahead so you would know that you weren't…forgotten on this special day."

Sarah smiled. "Thank you; that's very kind of you."

Sarah plopped down at her vanity. "Here." She pulled a chip from a bag she had been snacking on earlier and offered it to the hat. "To tide you over until I can procure us some cake?"

She placed the chip down on her dresser. When she blinked the bird was happily crunching away.

"It's good. It's alright. But there is cake? There is cake coming?"

"Yes," Sarah laughed at the bird's single-mindedness. "Are you planning on coming through then?"

The Wiseman shook his head. "No, at least not right now. I was simply hoping for a little chat."

"Okay…" Sarah replied slowly, "about anything in particular?"

"Yes. I wished to give you your ah…coming of age present, I suppose is what you could call it."

Sarah's face lit up. "You've brought me a gift?"

Occasionally her friends would bring her back gifts from the Labyrinth. Little trinkets just so she could hold onto something real. The gifts varied from wonderful to somewhat less than welcome. Two years ago Hoggle had offered her a stunned fairy in a jar. He'd forgotten to put in air holes. Last year, however, he'd given her a beautiful crystal ring which he'd found outside the Labyrinth wall, in the dirt. He swore it belonged to one of the high nobility, and he wanted her to have it. Sarah treasured it, and whenever she looked at it, she almost swore she could see images in it.

The Wiseman smiled at her. "Yes, that is, if you want it?"

Sarah bit her lip hesitantly. "It's nothing…smelly or dead is it?"

"What! Why would you want that?!" the bird squawked at her.

"No I don't – just nevermind. What is my gift?"

The Wiseman pulled a book from underneath him. It was large and appeared incredibly old. Bound in leather, it had strange symbols on the cover that Sarah could not read. Sarah blinked, and the book was sitting open on her desk. She carefully turned the pages. The paper was so old Sarah was frightened it would fall apart in her hands.

The book was filled with varying symbols that Sarah didn't recognize and a few diagrams. Flipping through she caught the occasional word in English or at least in a language she knew to be from Above. The diagrams and the words she recognized told her that it was likely some sort of magic book. There were large passages, and then there were smaller areas that appeared to be actual spells.

Sarah looked closely at one diagram in particular. At first she thought it was a rip in the page, but on closer examination it was a drawing of a crack. On the opposite page there was a drawing of a person lying down with wisps floating away from their head and turning into what Sarah assumed were crystals.

"That is a very special book, Sarah."

Sarah's head jerked up from the page. She had completely forgotten that the Wiseman was there, she'd been so consumed in the book.

"Why are you giving this to me? Where did it come from?" she asked, running her hand over the symbols on the page.

"I am not giving it to you, but rather allowing you to borrow it. It is much too valuable to leave the Underground permanently. As for where," the Wiseman paused, considering his answer, "it is from the Goblin King's private collection."

"What?" Sarah shrieked, taking a step back from her vanity. "No! I can't - did you steal this from him?! I'm not having him showing up here carting me down to the goblin dungeon over thievery."

The Wiseman and his hat laughed. "I wouldn't worry about that. It belonged to me before it belonged to him. I assure you he will not notice it is gone."

Sarah slowly sat back down, eyeing the Wiseman and his hat suspiciously. "Okay, he better not, or I'm bringing you two down with me."

Sarah began looking at the writing on the page again. She couldn't make sense of it, but she knew it had to be important. Something so old to have survived for so long and to be in the Goblin King's private collection, it had to have really valuable information.

"Why did you lend this to me then?" Sarah asked the Wiseman curiously. "If it's so important that it cannot leave the Underground permanently?"

The Wiseman raised his brows at her. "For your love of words and books, Sarah. I knew you would treasure it. Do you like it?"

Sarah nodded. "I do. I mean, I can't really read it…it's in another language, one I've never even seen before. But I like it very much. I just wish I knew what it said."

The Wiseman held up a hand to stop her from speaking further. "I will grant your wish, for your birthday Sarah. Which particular piece would you like to know?"

Sarah looked down at the crack and the figure lying on the table on the page open in front of her. She picked up the book and held it open in front of the mirror. "This one."

"I had hoped. You see that symbol there?" The Wiseman stretched his finger out to the symbol at the top of the page "That is the symbol for return and the one beside it, for banishment. It is a spell, Sarah, a spell for dreamers. Dreams that perhaps they do not want anymore." At this he looked expectantly at Sarah.

Her eyes narrowed. "What exactly do you mean by that?"

The hat was staring at Sarah intently. She'd never heard it be silent for so long.

"Tell me, young woman, do you often find yourself dreaming of the Underground? Of its inhabitants? Of one in particular, hmm? That isn't what you want, though, is it, Sarah? Yet you keep the Underground and the Labyrinth alive in your mind at all times. Because it is the last place you felt truly happy? What about wishing, more than anything, that you could move forward with your life past the walls of the Goblin City? Past that last confrontation. Always wondering if the cost was too great."

Sarah let the book fall on her dresser. The Wiseman was smiling at her, but it was not a kind smile like she had been given before.

"How do you know all that?" Sarah hissed at the Wiseman.

"There is always a price to be paid. You will claw at and cling to the memories as they eat you up inside." The Wiseman's voice was cruel.

Sarah felt the coldness in his voice and shivered. "What does any of this have to do with the book?"

"It is a gift, Sarah" the Wiseman answered calmly. "A gift and a promise...if you will take it."

"What does the spell have to do with any of it?" Sarah replied tersely.

"Sometimes the way forward is the way back. You know as well as I do that you are not finished with the Underground, otherwise you would not cling to it so strongly." The Wiseman paused and leaned towards her. "But what no one knew was that the King of the Goblins had fallen in love with the girl."

"That's not true." Sarah sneered at the Wiseman. "I made that up; it was never in the book."

"I wonder how sure you are of that. The girl who ate the peach and forgot everything… the Underground has marked you Sarah." The Wiseman paused. "Would you truly like to stop these dreams? Sever the claim the Underground has on you? To move on and live your life the way you always planned? Go to college, get a job, and live here Above?"

"Yes," Sarah breathed. "I can't keep them. I want my life, whichever life I choose."

"Do you believe that you could always run away again? Come back Underground if real life got too hard?" The Wiseman laughed cruelly "you are eighteen years old today, young woman. You have come of age. You can no longer run from your problems or wish them away to Goblin Kings. So tell me, Sarah, what do you want?"

"I want both." Sarah's voice began to waver slightly. "I want the life I choose, but I also want the Underground. Why can't I have that?"

"You're too young still. You're not ready. You will be someday. Then you'll be able to know. Forwards, backwards, you're always going to end up in the same place. But not now, I can see it's not now."

"You're not making any sense!" Sarah tearfully shouted at the Wiseman.

"What do you want, Sarah?" The Wiseman pressed urgently now.

"I want what I fought for! I want my life!" Sarah yelled at him angrily.

"You can have it. That's what this spell is for. It will give you your true freedom. But today is your last chance," the Wiseman warned.

"Why does it have to be today?" Sarah asked.

"Because today is your eighteenth birthday. You get a single wish. Make it count, and choose your right words. The wish you make…that is up to you."

The Wiseman's words were kinder now. He was not mocking her anymore. Simply offering what he had promised. One hand brushed over the symbols at the top of the page. The symbol for banishment and beside it, return. She picked up her copy of  _The Labyrinth_ , lying off to the side of the larger book.

"I don't make wishes anymore, Wiseman."

The Wiseman smiled. "Now I think we both know that is not true."

"You brought this book here to tempt me," Sarah accused, but the Wiseman simply shrugged in response. "I've changed my mind. I don't want it anymore." Sarah closed the book and let it disappear from her vanity.

The Wiseman nodded. "He thinks of you often, even if he cannot bring himself to say your name. Curious that you seem to be in the same predicament. I wonder what they would call that?"

She paused with that thought just a second too long. The Wiseman took his chance and vanished.

There was no particular reason she wouldn't say his name. She knew it. It was always there waiting to be called, to be spoken. But she didn't want to summon him by mistake. Having him take hearing his name as an invitation to appear in her bedroom.

She didn't want to see him. She didn't want to see him. She won't ever see him.

The mantra that had become so well worn in her mind, this year perhaps she would believe it.

She walked from her dresser and picked up the music box. She wound it up and watched the little dancer spin. The melody that was so familiar to her. When she couldn't sleep, she'd play it, whispering out the lyrics that the music box never had.

"In search of new dreams…" she mumbled under her breath, watching the dancer spin, trapped forever in her music box home.

"It appears, little princess, that now I want everything," Sarah spoke softly to the music box dancer. "Especially that which I really shouldn't. Things were much easier when all I had to deal with was a new stepmother and a screaming baby."

She placed the music box down.

"The Wiseman lied. He lied. It was just a lie. Nothing more. I made it up. To make the story seem more interesting."

The melody continued tinkering away, reminding her that her dreams were real and that she was unlikely to escape them anytime soon. Sarah hated that she wasn't sure she wanted them to stop. She let out a deep sigh, closing her eyes and listening to the song.

"I don't want this. I just…sometimes I wish I didn't have any of it. I didn't have to remember it at all. As though I never set foot in the Labyrinth."

The music box stopped singing.

"Sarah!"

She opened her eyes.

"Come downstairs; it's time for cake!" her stepmother called up to her.

"Coming, Karen!" she shouted back downstairs.

Sarah picked up the silent music box, looking at it in confusion. Why did that…she shook her head to clear the lingering thoughts and placed it in the charity box. She quickly went over to her vanity to run the brush through her hair one more time. In the process she accidentally knocked over the figurine and it split down the middle where its former crack was. Sarah picked up the two pieces.

"Why is this even out here?" she asked to no one in particular. She shrugged and tossed it without another thought into the waste basket.

She paused at her desk as she slipped her favourite crystal ring on. She felt like she was forgetting something important that she had to do today but chalked it up to pre-moving stress. She could worry about it later.

Sarah ran downstairs to meet her family for her birthday cake. She did not notice that the little red book that had always been close at hand was now missing from her dresser. In fact, it was though it never existed in the first place.


	16. Chapter 16

Sarah felt herself being pulled back to reality as the crystal dissolved in her hands. She looked down at them, now bare as if hoping for an answer, any answer, but the one she had been given.

The last memory, it had been returned to her now. She hadn't just seen it; she remembered it as it happened. She remembered the way she'd felt after she'd said those words, and how it seemed as though something was literally pulled from her.

Sarah also remembered what led her to say them in the first place. She'd be lying if she said that she really did not believe that those words would have no effect. She had hoped, when she spoke them, that they would help. That it would be enough. Sarah supposed that it was that small bit of hope which gave her words the certainty they needed to solidify the wish. Words were just words if you didn't believe them; that much she had learned from both her job in her life Above and from the Underground.

But she never would have said them, never would have believed them, not for one minute if she had known what she'd be destroying.

She buried her face in her hands, trying very hard to cry. To have her tears help absolve her guilt. But she found she couldn't. She couldn't even give herself that much, knowing what she knew now.

She had taken everything from them. Her friends, the only friends she had. Hoggle, Ludo and Sir Didymus – she took something from them she had no business touching in the first place. She was Hoggle's first friend...perhaps his only friend, and now, was he alone again? That gruff gardener she'd first encountered upon entering the Labyrinth? Was Ludo back to being strung up and attacked again? Sir Didymus, did he return to guarding the bog with only Ambrosius for company?

She felt sick to her stomach. It was her fault; everything was her fault. The Wiseman may have provoked her and helped her, but nobody made her say those words. She should have known better; there was always a cost to be paid.

Here she was gallivanting around castles and Labyrinths trying to figure out who had destroyed her friends' memories and robbed her of her own.

Selfish Sarah, manipulative Sarah, cruel Sarah.

She could deny those titles no longer. She had been incredibly selfish and incredibly cruel. Taking advantage of her friends' kindness and love. Then there was the Goblin King himself.

Sarah had no idea what she would say to him the next time he saw her. This memory belonged to her and the Wiseman alone; he'd have no reason to know just how she had caused the loss of the memory of her throughout the Underground, except she knew he would figure it out the moment she opened her mouth. She had never been particularly good at keeping secrets, and this was not one she could hold forever. She feared as soon as she told him the truth, he would abandon her back in her dingy apartment Aboveground. Never to be heard from or called to again - a concept which she no longer thought she could bear. The Underground was a part of her now, just like it always had been, whether she had known it or not. She did have a place here. She just wasn't entirely sure what that place was just yet. But she would be damned if she allowed him to dictate when and where she lived her life with a simple wave of his hand. Despite this, however, she felt she owed it to him to tell him the truth.

But why?

Why did she feel she owed him anything at all?

That thought nagged at the back of her mind. He was the reason she made the wish in the first place. Those dreams, which she knew for certain now that he hadn't sent, no more than she had sent his, were what caused her careless wish. She was frightened of him. She was frightened of the effect he had on her, on her mind. She reacted like any scared eighteen year old would have, by doing something rash, foolish and regrettable. So why did she owe him anything? He had his memories back where her friends did not. He was not the wronged party here.

" _Liar_ _,_ " a little voice at the back of her mind nagged.

She remembered how he had looked in his crystal dream. Wandering the streets Aboveground, desperately searching for a girl he couldn't remember in the first place. He was desperate; she absolutely knew that. He was desperate to find her and end his years-long suffering. Would she have recognized him if he had managed to find her? Would she have listened to him if she did?

" _You know exactly what and why you owe him_ _,_ " the voice reminded her.

He may have been the reason she gave it up; he wasn't the reason she came back, but she feared he might be the reason she stayed.

It was that thought, more than anything else that struck her the hardest.

It was true, though, he really was her only constant companion here. Her other friends who would never remember her, she hadn't even managed to find them yet; Lickered was sweet but hardly someone she could really talk to; the Wiseman – well she'd deal with him later, but he was clearly not a friend.

While she may not be able to trust Jareth, she had to admit to enjoying his company, as aggravating as it could be at times. He had promised to give her more. To stop keeping so many things from her. Of course he would promise this the very night prior to her last crucial memory being returned.

She would tell him, she promised herself; she just needed time. There had to be a way to reverse the effects; there was always another way.

It was that little shred of hope that allowed her to get to sleep that night. The hope that she could at least begin to make it right with her friends and the Labyrinth.

The next morning Sarah skipped breakfast, hoping to avoid seeing the Goblin King as long as possible. She resented the idea behind the dresses. A queen she most certainly was not. Queens don't destroy kingdoms and kings the way she had done. Not to mention she could think of no worse time to get herself stuck in a corset again. She wouldn't put it past Jareth to keep her gasping for air while she blurted out the whole thing.

Reluctantly, she pulled out a light grey pair of the pants he had had made for her. She slipped them on and to her surprise found they were not nearly as tight as she had anticipated. They weren't exactly baggy either, but they did not show every outline and contour as Jareth's did. Sarah smiled, pleased that he considered that not only would she appreciate a few pairs of pants, but that she may not want to wear them to his particular style. It was thoughtful of him.

Sarah's smile vanished at this thought occurred to her. She didn't need more reminders of the Goblin King's good deeds, as few and far in between as they were. It was more than likely the tailor's decision anyway.

Sarah pulled on one of the long, white blouses that had been placed towards the back. She wrapped a black, studded belt around her waist and threw on a form-fitting leather jacket on top to keep out the cold. She yanked one of the pairs of tall boots onto her feet, pleased at the lack of laces that meant it did not take her a thousand years to put on a pair of shoes. Sarah quickly threw her hair up into a ponytail and headed out into the Labyrinth. Someone owed her much more than an explanation.

Sarah easily found her way to the Wiseman this time. She knew exactly where she was going and was no longer turned around by the shifting labyrinth. Now it felt like it shifted to suit her needs.

She heard the Wiseman humming as she approached.

" _Amazing grace how sweet the sound_

_That found a wretch like me_

_I once was lost_

_But now am found_

_Was blind_

_But now I see_ "

" _Amazing Grace_ ," she thought to herself, remembering it as one of her mother's songs. She used to sing it to Sarah as she fell asleep when she was little. If it was possible, the sound of it incensed her even more.

Sarah stormed up to the Wiseman, who arched an eyebrow expectantly.

"You son of a bitch."

"Oh I see you've found it then. Very good!" The Wiseman clapped cheerfully.

Sarah rolled her eyes and grabbed the Wiseman by his beard.

"You had no right. No right at all."

The bird now took up the Wiseman's chorus.

" _Amazing Grace_

 _How sweeeeet the sounnnnddd_ "

Sarah gritted her teeth and grabbed the bird's neck with her other hand.

"And if you don't shut that bird up then I promise he will really have something to sing about."

She released the bird's neck, and he started squawking madly.

"He doesn't control me! I am my own hat! A lone hat in the distance! I fight for the rights of hats everywhere! Equal opportunity headgear! Unless you're a rabbit. I hate rabbit hats; they smell like goblin dung. Death to the rabbits! We fight or we cower!"

The Wiseman sighed and raised his hands to box the bird's ears. The bird screeched and went silent.

"There, are we quite happy now?" the Wiseman replied, annoyed.

Sarah smirked. "Oh no, we've not even begun, Wiseman."

The Wiseman gave a wry smile. "No I rather thought we hadn't. The second question then?"

"You were right about that. I think I will keep it to a simple, 'why,' Wiseman," Sarah answered tersely.

"I already gave you an answer for that yesterday, if you'll recall."

"What? That I was always coming? To help me find my way back? No, you deliberately and maliciously set me up to forget. I may have said the words, but you were the provocation. I never... if you hadn't told me what you did that day – about him, – I would have continued my life, perfectly happy, my friends and my memories intact. Instead you set out to destroy the one thing, _the one thing_ that made me happy and made me feel like I had a home somewhere. They were my only friends, and you not only took their friendship from me, but my friendship from them. I don't know why you obviously have a vendetta against me, and honestly I don't care, but they have done nothing to you. To hurt them in that way...that is what's really despicable."

Sarah took a breath, her face flushed with anger. The Wiseman calmly pulled a pipe from his pocket and lit it, taking a few slow drags before choosing to respond.

"I'm afraid they became narrative casualties, my dear. You no longer needed them, so you wrote them out of your story. We must put away our childish things, after all."

Sarah's eyes blazed.

"They are not narrative anything; they are Hoggle, Ludo and Sir Didymus..." a _nd Jareth_ , her mind finished for her. "They have names. They are real creatures who you cannot just dismiss so easily!"

"Why? You did. In fact, I only suggested that you might want to forget, it was you who chose the specific words you did. What were they again...ah yes, 'I wish it was though I had never set foot in the Labyrinth.' Well, wish granted, my sweet Sarah. A simple, 'I wish to forget the Labyrinth,' would have done the trick as well, although I must admit not as thoroughly as your choice. You were the one who decided that not only you should forget, but everyone else, as well. A powerful spell, young woman, one with a devastating effect, but you know this."

The Wiseman's eyes were cruel now, just as they had been years before, urging her to say her right words. Sarah was too furious to care anymore.

"I know what I said, Wiseman. Don't think for one moment I don't regret it, either. For ten years I felt as though I was always searching for something. Like a piece of me was missing. Forgotten dreams and isolation, I never would have said those words if I knew the cost. But I intend to change that," Sarah snapped at the Wiseman.

"Oh, you do?" the Wiseman replied with amused interest.

"Yes. In all good stories, there is always a way to reverse the spell. Especially when the speaker did not mean it in the first place. I'm going to find a way to restore their memories, and then... then I'll have my friends back. There is a way, and if anyone knows of it, I'm sure it's you. It will be much easier for you to simply tell me now; otherwise I will show you my cruelty. I promise, years of solitude and emptiness have not done much for my kindness."

Sarah kept her eyes fixed on the Wiseman's so he would know just how deadly serious she was. She had no true intention of harming him as long as he simply told her how it could be done. If he did not, or if he fed her false spells, then she truly knew she would have no trouble finding an oubliette that he could rot within. She could always explain to Jareth later.

"Whatever made you believe this was a good story? In all good stories the wicked king lies defeated, and the heroine takes her victory, never looking back. You seem inclined to do exactly the opposite, young woman. There is no spell. Your words are all there was and all there is. You have made your choices, and unfortunately I think you'll find there are no labyrinths to run for them. Live with it." The Wiseman was completely unconcerned with her threat, having been made quite familiar with the Goblin King's methods of interrogation.

She believed him. She believed he had no spell to give her. But that didn't mean there wasn't one to be found. She had to try. For their sake and, selfishly she knew, her peace as well.

"You are right. I do make my choices. But I refuse to live with it."

The Wiseman chuckled. "Then what has the Goblin King said of your choices?"

Sarah paused, wondering just how much she should give away. She did not get a chance to answer before the Wiseman answered her silence with another question.

"Do you love him, Sarah?"

Sarah glared at the Wiseman. "I don't love anyone."

The Wiseman smiled. "Interestingly, I recall Jareth replying almost identically some time ago."

"You call him Jareth?"

"So do you," the Wiseman offered.

"Yes, but I'm his..." Sarah leaned against the brick wall and trailed off, unsure of how to complete that sentence. His friend? His former adversary?

"His what, Sarah? His love? His queen?"

"I'm nothing," Sarah stated firmly.

"I wouldn't be so quick to make that judgement. Have you by any chance seen yourself today? Were it not for the dark hair, I could have sworn I was talking to the Goblin King himself."

Sarah smoothed down her blouse self-consciously. Brushing over her jacket, she had not realized until that moment how it was a perfect match for his. She wanted to throw it into a fire right then and there.

"You keep saying I'm a queen. But queens do not go around making foolish wishes without thinking. Queens don't destroy kingdoms in one swift motion without a care in the world."

The Wiseman chuckled.

"Yes, and Kings don't spend ten years with desperation and obsession in their eyes as they search Aboveground. Trying to track down the one girl he wants so badly to forget and hold at the same time. I think you know very little of Kings and Queens, Sarah... but you are learning."

Sarah scowled.

"I could speak to the Goblin King; tell him what you have done. I'm sure he'd be very curious to know who instigated such desperation in him. Who created the loss in the first place. There will be no bog for you, my lady Sarah; I suspect he'll have you exiled for the treason you committed." The Wiseman raised a brow curiously. "Yet you won't tell him. You  _fear_  being exiled left to rot in a world that doesn't want you. This time there will be no forgetting."

"Aboveground is my home. Returning there would be no punishment. That is not why I am not telling him," Sarah retorted angrily.

"Oh, it isn't? Then tell me, young woman, just what is keeping you from calling at his door right now? Spilling all your secrets to his waiting ears? Do you think he will take you into his arms and forgive you as easily as you forgot him? Or is that what you fear? That he will... or that he won't."

Sarah did not answer right away, thinking carefully about her next move. She knew enough to never concede to the Wiseman. He could tell Jareth everything, and then she really would be punished if he did not hear it from her own lips; this she knew. That being said, she also believed the Wiseman would never tell the king. He was an agent of chaos. He might play with the circumstances and force positions she'd rather avoid, but he would allow the situation to play out. It was why he did not tell her the words outright; it was why he had led Jareth back to her; and it was why he was sitting here, idly smoking his pipe when he held the chance to bring her to her knees. He liked a game.

"I just need time is all."

The Wiseman laughed. "Well luckily for you, that is something the Goblin King has plenty of."

Sarah sighed deeply. This conversation, like every other with the Wiseman, had not gone as planned.

The Wiseman shook his head, feeling slightly sorry for the girl. Things were only going to get more difficult for her from now on.

"Sarah, in order for you to come back you had to first let go. To lose what you loved so dearly. You were always going to return, you know; the question was not the when but the how. Would it be on your terms or his? Would you be coming here as the fallen hero or an equal? Calling out to him one night in desperation, running from a world that had gotten much too harsh? I have given you a gift, the gift of time to find yourself and carve out your own life. You are not a girl anymore; you have lived and learned some hard lessons. Lessons that would have been much more difficult in their learning knowing you could run away anytime you wanted. Your will as strong, your kingdom as great. Queens do not beg to return, they do not run, and they do not bend. Queens are strong and can match the will and strength of their husbands. Queens survive. Just as you have survived, Sarah. You knew there was something missing, something  _so_  important, and you did not give up until you found it."

Sarah stared off into the distance, lost in his words. Necessary or not, that was not his choice to make. But it was done - her words, his hand. He was right about one thing; she wasn't going to give up. She would find a way to make this right. She would return what she had stolen, somehow. Sarah turned and looked at the Wiseman, who was humming to himself again, happily puffing on his pipe. It was as though she wasn't even there. She gave a curt nod to the Wiseman and headed back up to the castle.


	17. Chapter 17

For the next few weeks Sarah did three things. The first was spend all of daylight learning the Labyrinth. Learning it beyond what she had seen in her first journey through. She wanted to know the way it moved, where it moved and most importantly why it moved. She wanted to know every single orifice by heart, and she wanted to know all the inhabitants she could by name. Those who didn't have names, she helped them choose one, if they wanted.

Initially Sarah had hoped she would find her friends on her journeys, but after speaking with a number of the residents of both the Labyrinth and the Goblin City, it was clear that her friends were either gone or completely out of her reach. Hoggle, she was told, never ventured beyond the gates where he was in charge of fairy extermination. It was said he was frightened of the Labyrinth and of the Goblin King. Ludo, or as he was more commonly known within the Goblin City, "the beast" was currently hiding deep in the Woods of Eternal Night after being carted off by a group of Goblins determined to rid their city of the destructive beast. They told Sarah he would call rocks and bring down their homes, so they sent him to the forest. Sir Didymus had previously been guarding the Bog of Eternal Stench. But when the bridge had mysteriously collapsed some years ago, there was no longer any need of him, and the last anyone heard he had set off east toward the Troll King's keep in search of a worthy challenge.

Once Sarah had realized that getting to Hoggle and Ludo would require a great deal of understanding of the Labyrinth she made that her goal. She would know the Labyrinth inside and out, and it would lead her to her friends. Even if they didn't remember her, she needed to apologize to them. Not explain, just apologize. She had no business trying to justify her actions to them; her excuses felt weak even to her own ears, but they had a right to an apology.

When nearly three weeks had passed, Sarah could follow the pulse of the Labyrinth through the soles of her feet. She recognized the uniqueness of the stones, the patterns of lichen in the walls and how to best bribe the Junk Ladies, as she'd grown to calling them, for assistance in traveling the waste piles. She rarely got lost anymore, and if she did, she would simply follow the beat of the Labyrinth until she found somewhere familiar. The Labyrinth was large and complicated, but it was not closed to her. She wasn't foolish enough to believe her defeat of the structure gave her a bond with it, but rather that it helped her gain a greater understanding of its foundations. As long as she kept a few things in mind, she would never be truly lost or too far from the castle. The Labyrinth would always bring her back to the center if she trusted it and her own instincts. Just because she had walked for hours did not mean there was not a turn or secret passage somewhere that would lead her quickly back.

However, she had not yet managed to get beyond the first gates of the Labyrinth. They would not open for her no matter how hard she tried. She suspected it was kept closed by magic that would require much more than the right question. She had likewise not been able to bring herself to conquer the forest just yet. It was the only area of the Labyrinth that ever seemed threatening to her. She knew the way out of most oubliettes by now, and the cleaners had promised to always check before making a round through a tunnel from now on. Even the bog was navigable if you knew where to step. But the forest was something else. There was no way for her to explore it without risking getting trapped. Unlike the rest of the Labyrinth the forest was sentient. It was grown to trap trespassers and vanish threats. Sarah remembered that even Gwrtheyrn, a king, had trouble controlling it at times. She was not yet willing to risk it.

The second thing Sarah did was spend every moment after the sun began setting in the library with Hilly. Together they scoured every spell book, history book, legend and reference book regarding the Underground hoping for a way to undo Sarah's spell. Hilly was initially reluctant to help after the punishment she had later received from the Goblin King after the last time she helped Sarah, but Sarah had been expecting this. She offered the dwarf her pick of any of the jewels that Sarah had been gifted with in her jewellery box. Sarah wasn't strictly sure if the jewels were hers to give away in the first place, or if they were merely a loan while she stayed in the castle, but she found she didn't really care. She had given her bejewelled hair pins to the Wiseman, and so far no one had demanded repayment from her.

So far she and Hilly had found nothing to aid her situation. Every book they read reiterated the fact that what was done was done. Nearly every book likewise said that what Sarah had accomplished should never have been possible in the first place. Sarah was not a resident of the Underground; she was no mage or sorceress, and she had no understanding of spells and their components. A spell like Sarah's would take many, many years for a human to learn even with training in sorcery. The fae were a completely different story of course; it would be somewhat easier for them, but unlike Sarah's spell, their spell would only ever be able to affect those over whom they had power. Jareth could affect his kingdom but no further. If Jareth chose to cast such a spell, and Sarah was in the Goblin Kingdom at the time, the spell would pass her over, never touching. Sorcerers did not have such a stipulation, but given that the spell was so complex, few bothered to learn it.

The third thing Sarah did was avoid the Goblin King as much as possible. This had proven to be the most difficult task, as despite having an entire Labyrinth and expansive castle at her disposal in which to hide, Sarah always seemed to find him. Or perhaps he always seemed to be able to find her.

It had been a self defense, she reasoned to herself over and over. She wanted to make peace with her friends before she told him what she had done. That way, if he sent her back Above permanently (a kinder option, as her mind consistently reminded her of the various ways he could punish her), she could go with a relatively clear conscience. She had no clue how she was ever going to find Sir Didymus at this point, and all her book-searching for a counter-spell was giving her less than nothing. So until it did, or until she had managed to reach all her friends, she was dodging Jareth at every turn - something which was not helping in absolving her guilt.

He wanted her to trust him, and she had quite literally seen his dreams. He had promised her nothing, but she knew he was trying to be more forthcoming. Which was more than a start as far as Jareth was concerned. It meant he clearly wanted her to feel a part of this world and specifically his life. It would have been very easy for him to have terminated their agreement that night with the crystal and sent her hurdling back to her life Above, never to darken the doorstep of the Underground again. But he didn't, and she knew why.

While she demanded a reason to trust him, she was giving him no reason to trust her. She was now hiding important information not only about him, but his kingdom as well. She knew that this constituted treason, but more than that, it was a sort of betrayal of the trust they were – no he was – working to establish between them. She believed he would have a harder time accepting this than the treason when she eventually told him.

But more than her reluctance to tell him the truth was the fact that she wasn't sure what to do about the Goblin King altogether. They had developed an odd sort of friendship in the time she had been Underground. But the problem was, Sarah was never going to be his friend, and he would never truly be hers. There was no friendship with the Goblin King. She knew that now; their relationship was always going to be more. It was the nature of them and where they had grown from. They were not enemies, they were not friends, and they were not lovers. They fell somewhere in between, a fact that scared Sarah into hiding behind bookshelves when he came into the library and crouching against walls when he walked through the Labyrinth. If she did not see him and did not speak to him, then she did not have to answer for any of it. At least not yet. She knew her actions were childish and more than a little irrational, but the Wiseman had said it best. One thing the Goblin King had plenty of was time, and she needed to buy some. Sarah hoped when she managed to find a reversal for the spell she would know just what she wanted. She no longer believed her life Aboveground would be enough.

She had a feeling Jareth knew she was avoiding him, just as she was equally sure he knew exactly where she was when she hid behind bookshelves and walls. But either due to courtesy or annoyance at her immaturity, he never said anything. Sarah knew if he wanted to he only needed to appear by her side. Even so, every evening he would come into the library with a book. He would say nothing, simply sitting down on the largest couch by the window and reading the same book every day. He would read for no more than an hour exactly and then pick up and leave. The first time he did this, Sarah was concerned. The second time, she was curious. The third time, she was brave enough to hide behind the couch he was sitting on. She pressed her back against the upholstery and continued reading through her book while he did the same. He knew she was there, of course he had to know, but he didn't say a word. So for three weeks they continued this ritual. Only lasting an hour, with nobody – not even Hilly – saying a word. Sarah had begun to find it oddly comforting.

"You wants to hide from the Goblin King, that's fine with me. I sees no good reason why anyone would want to spend more time with him than they gots to. That's just asking for a trip to the bog, is what it is. But ever since yous started spending all your evenings in here the Goblin King has come by more in the last three weeks then he has in the last century. I shoulds ask for more payment from yous is what I should," Hilly grumbled as she stacked that evening's books from atop a ladder.

"I never asked him to come in here, you know!" Sarah called up to Hilly.

"Hmph! Well, you sure do seem right pleased he has. Right cosy is what you look."

Hilly threw a book that must have weighed twice she did, and it soared awkwardly to the top of the pile. In between their studying, Sarah had learned that Hilly had spent enough time alone in the library to pick up a few handy tricks or two. A few handy magical tricks in particular. It was how she got the books so high and kept them from falling. But she wasn't particularly good at magic as it is not in a dwarf's disposition and could only lift and throw a certain distance. That was why there were ladders everywhere.

"I don't like what you're insinuating!"

"I ain't insinuatin' nothin'. You's walking a mighty fine line there Sarah."

Sarah rolled her eyes. Like she didn't already know this.

"You know, most of the goblins call me Lady or Lady Sarah."

Hilly grunted sceptically at her.

"Do I looks like a goblin? Better – do you look like a lady?"

Sarah crossed her arms and grinned at the dwarf teasingly.

"The Wiseman says I'm a queen you know."

Hilly let out a bark of laughter. "You ask the Wiseman what day it is, he'll tells you it's a quarter to purple. Did he happens to mention what you's a queen of, then? The madmen and their birds?"

"He left that part out. Although I think there is definitely more to him than a madman. He knows a great deal more than he lets on."

Hilly slowly made her way down the ladder. Sarah moved to help her, but Hilly swatted her hands away, hopping down from the last rung.

"That might be the smartest thing you've said all week Sarah. Now gets out of my library; I'm going to bed."

Perhaps what bothered her more than anything else about the Goblin King's evening visits was the fact that he was always reading the same book. She knew the book wasn't very large; Hilly had told her that much, so by all accounts he should have more than finished it by now. She had asked Hilly numerous times what book he was reading, but the dwarf had told her it was no book she recognized, and she was not stupid enough to ask him. Sarah began to get more than curious as to which book it was. Hilly knew every book in the library and even most of the ones in Jareth's collection. So one evening, when he came into the library, she decided to peek. Just a quick look over the top of the couch to see what book it was. Then she'd slide back down, and he would be none the wiser.

After he came in and sat down Sarah waited fifteen minutes. Just long enough for him to get comfortable and settled. Then, slowly and silently she rose from behind the couch in an attempt to get a glimpse of the text.

As it turned out a quick look was all she needed. Sarah recognized her own hand writing immediately scrawled in the margins.

" _What nobody knew was that the Goblin King had fallen in love with the girl."_

"Hey that's my book!"

She quickly clapped a hand over her mouth and groaned inwardly. Of course she'd sell herself out this way. Not by being caught, but by literally calling out to him.

The Goblin King turned slowly to face her. Given her position leaning over the back of the couch, his face was inches from hers. They were, as usual, much too close for Sarah's comfort. She stood up and walked to stand in front of him, wanting to give herself some distance.

"Where did you get that?"

The Goblin King raised a brow at her.

"For three weeks you dodge my presence hiding behind whatever you can find. Then when you cannot escape you respond monosyllabically. Really now, Sarah, the first time you deign to have a conversation with me you're making demands?"

"Yes, now where did you get that book! I left it in my bedroom Aboveground. Wait, have you been in my bedroom?"

Sarah moved to snatch the books from his hands, but he easily avoided her.

"Hardly. It was given to me."

Sarah narrowed her eyes skeptically.

"By who?"

"By whom, Sarah. You're an editor, tsk tsk," Jareth admonished her.

Sarah growled low in her throat. "Oh you have no idea how close you are to having me throw one of these towers of books down on you."

The Goblin King smirked, pleased at her agitation.

"As it happens, the Wiseman gifted it to me. He said I would find it most interesting, and I do have to agree. Especially this insertion here."

He pointed to where she'd written about the Goblin King falling in love with her.

"Obviously it's a lie. It was just something I added to make the story more interesting. Nothing more," Sarah responded coolly. After all, the passage he was referring to said that the Goblin King fell in love with the girl; nowhere in there mentioned the girl falling in love with the Goblin King.

Jareth snapped the book closed and extended it towards her.

"Quite right. Just a story. After all, I can certainly attest that it was not  _I_  who gave you these certain powers."

Sarah slowly reached out and took the book from him. He had said the Wiseman had gifted it to him… but for what? Information, perhaps? Sarah doubted that the Wiseman had told him anything substantial regarding her spell, but he had said something, enough to make him tease her like this but not enough to confront her directly. Jareth was playing a game, just as he had been these past weeks, sitting here and waiting for her to talk. Her book was an obvious choice as the method to break her silence. He had known she would react strongly when she noticed him reading it.

"You've been wanting to talk to me for a while then, Jareth. Sitting here every night, reading and re-reading this book, just waiting for me to notice. Too shy to make the first move then?"

Sarah smiled at him smugly. There was no way she was letting him have full control over the situation.

Jareth smirked at her. "Hardly. But you seemed quite intent to keep this wall of silence between us for reasons I am, at present, not privy to. I don't know if it was intended to be purely to test my patience with you, or if there was some deep emotional turmoil that required your solitude. Truthfully I don't much care the reason. I decided to let your stubbornness on this matter wear itself out rather than engaging in another round of verbal combat with you where neither of us get what we want. What you were doing was childish, but I believe you know that now."

Sarah had nothing to say in response and dug her nails into her palm. He was right, and perhaps more than anything, she hated when he was right. She wanted to lash out and yell at him for it, but she doubted that would help his idea of her childishness.

Jareth let out a deep sigh and relaxed against the couch.

"It does not matter anymore, Sarah. I have given you your space and allowed you to be the one to break it. Now I have come with news."

"News?" Sarah responded, surprised.

"Yes, Beltane will be taking place at the end of the week. We are required to attend the celebration festival at the grounded palace of the Sea King. I have sent the dressmaker to create your gown as none of the ones in your closet with be suitable."

Jareth moved to exit, but Sarah sidestepped him, blocking his path.

"Okay, you're going to have to hold on a hot second there. This conversation is so far from over. To begin, I have more dresses in my closet than I could possibly wear. I do not need a new one."

"As I am the sovereign, and I will be escorting you, your ensemble will need to compliment mine. Your current gowns are neither appropriate nor comparable to my own outfit."

Sarah rolled her eyes. Of course they weren't. He was probably going dressed as a peacock, with actual feathers sticking out of his butt.

"Right, ignoring that rub, we are not required. You are required. Beltane is your holiday, not mine. I don't particularly want to go to a gathering of snooty, slave holding, imperialistic fae where I'm fairly sure I stand a pretty good chance of accidentally joining the ranks of their indentured servants. So I'm going to take a big pass on this."

Jareth sighed heavily at her and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"This was not a request, Sarah, and I would greatly appreciate it if you would not make this more difficult than it needs to be. Yes,  _we_  are required. As my personal guest, you have to obey the high feasts as long as you are Underground. The host has asked for you specifically, and so you are bound to attend. As a monarch of one of the kingdoms of the Underground, I am responsible for your attendance. If you do not attend, the kindest response would be to send you back Aboveground. So, Sarah, you've got two choices, either return Aboveground now, or accompany me to Beltane. Which will it be, hmm?"

Now it was Sarah's turn to sigh.

"Jareth, I'm not… trained for situations like this. I can handle myself just fine in a fancy cocktail party Aboveground, but this is something else entirely. How am I supposed to know what to say, what not to say, the customs, the dance moves, even?"

Jareth smiled kindly at her.

"I do understand this, Sarah; it likely not to be a fun night for you or myself. But as long as you stay close to me and follow my lead, you should be fine. I will not let any harm come to you. I promise."

Sarah was startled by his sincerity. She very much did not want to go, but at the very least, he was trying to be courteous about it.

Sarah smiled back at him weakly.

"Well, I guess we can keep each other company then."

Jareth's smile widened, and he nodded to her once curtly before taking his leave.

"Jareth, wait!" Sarah called to him at the door, stopping him.

"I won't have to wear a corset, will I?"

He grinned at her legitimately now.

"Why, I thought we both had plenty of fun with your last attempt at wearing one. Would you truly deny me the pleasure of pulling apart your strings once more?"

Sarah's expression soured.

"King or not, you're gunning for a left hook if you keep that up."

The Goblin King laughed

"Don't worry, Sarah, I promise no corset. This dress… is not being designed to accommodate one."

With that, he exited the library. Sarah let out a breath and collapsed onto the couch. Hilly peaked her head out from behind the stack where she'd been both hiding and eavesdropping.

"So you'll be goings to Beltane, then, eh?"

Sarah ran a hand down her face, exhausted.

"Evidently. Although he had better not be joking about that corset."


	18. Chapter 18

"That arrogant, perverted son of a bitch."

Sarah held up what was meant to be her dress in front of her. He certainly had not been lying about the corset, but he'd left out a few other key qualities of the dress. Namely that it was almost entirely backless, with a large slit up the front of the skirt. The front of the dress was cut just a bit too low for Sarah's liking, but that was the least of her worries. Where her bust line ended the dress seemed to be more than a little see-through at the front. The only saving grace of the garment was the color.

It was a soft, supple material and was the color of quicksilver. Sarah had begun to realize that the fabrics Underground were not the same as those Above, and so when she ran the fabric through her finger, it passed through like water. She refused to try it on, but even by swinging it in front of her she could see that with movement, the dress seemed to come alive with a million tiny pieces of crystal embedded somewhere in the fabric. While the dress appeared simple, if not risqué, it was clear to Sarah that this would have cost a small fortune to make anywhere else. It was designed to just be a normal dress on the hanger, but once one put it on, it would shine and stun for the wearer.

This did not change Sarah's mind about the dress, however.

She had taken a bath with the promise that her dress would be waiting for her when she was finished. Making sure her bathrobe was tied tightly, she picked up the "dress" and stormed out. Her room was, in this case conveniently, still located next to the Goblin King's. Sarah pounded on the door as hard as she could while still holding the dress.

"Goblin King! You get your egotistical, perverted backside out here right this second!"

The door swung open, and Sarah found the Goblin King standing in front of her and wearing a jacket of exactly the same glistening, grey fabric. Yet somehow more subtle than her gown, it appeared as though there was much less shine to his garment, although there was a certain aura of glitter around him none the less. He wore a shirt opened to his navel underneath, again a shimmering grey, and chose to pair it with one of his sets of obscenely tight black trousers. His dark boots appeared to likewise have a few of the crystals imbedded in it, which she only noticed as he was tapping his boot. He was attired in the perfect companion to her dress. Just as he had promised. It still managed to take her somewhat aback; she had not expected him to … appear as such, was the only response her mind gave her.

"Ah, good, I see you've received your gown."

This snapped Sarah out of it, and she thrust the dress into his arms, stomping into his bedroom.

"That is not a gown! That barely qualifies as clothing at all given the sheer lack of fabric used. You're out of your mind if you think I'm wearing it."

Jareth held up the dress in front of her, cocking his head to one side.

"Why, I think you'd look quite lovely in it, Sarah. You do have a most enticing back. I noticed it over our previous struggle with one of your garments. I had the dress designed especially to compliment it."

Sarah rolled her eyes and thankfully did not blush.

"Flattery is not getting me into that thing, Jareth. I do not share the same exhibitionist tendencies you do."

Jareth's expression soured.

"Sarah, you can either put this on willingly, or I will dress you in it myself. You might prefer the former, but I'm sure we can find a way to both enjoy the latter. Beltane is no place for modesty. Even this dress is being generous in its chasteness. If you appear too innocent, you will be easily made prey. You will spend the entire night hunted down and chased after, and soon it will become very obvious that you are not from this world. So I will not have anymore of this self righteous attitude of yours and simply request that you put on the dress. Now."

He handed the dress back towards her, but she blocked her arms in front of her chest.

"No. I won't."

"Fine," he growled, "have it your way."

He waved his hand, and suddenly her bathrobe was pooled on the floor, and she was perfectly made up in the dress, complete with her hair curled and styled and jewelry around her neck.

Thankfully the dress was not as low-cut as she'd originally imagined, and the sheerness at the front seemed to have disappeared. The slit in the skirt was manageable, she found, and the only truly risqué part was the back. She still did not care for the garment, but this she could live with for an evening.

"You altered it."

Jareth glanced at her dismissively.

"I was feeling generous. Although you did not deserve it."

"I had assumed you were going to literally pull me into the dress."

He raised an eyebrow and began to circle her, taking in her appearance.

"Yes, I could have."

She felt him run one of his fingers slowly up her spine.

"I do love your back."

She felt herself shiver slightly.

"Thank you."

"If you manage to get through the evening without spectacle or scene, I will have a gift for you, Sarah."

She glanced over her shoulder where he was continuing to caress her spine with the tips of his fingers.

"A gift?"

"Yes, a way of saying thank you. But only should you behave."

Sarah smiled at him.

"I'll be good; I promise."

She was treated to one of his wicked smiles in response.

"Oh no, I did not say that. Besides," he let his fingers follow from her spine, to her neck, to her jaw line, "you have never been very good at being…good."

He allowed his thumb to briefly graze her bottom lip. When she felt his breath on her neck, she inclined her head slightly and met his eyes barely an inch away. He smirked with satisfaction at her, and Sarah let out the breath she didn't realize she was holding.

"Well now, I think it is time we left, don't you?"

Sarah sighed, unsure if she was more annoyed at herself or him. He straightened his coat and offered her his arm. Begrudgingly she took it, reminding herself that it was just one evening she had to get through, surely she could do that.

She closed her eyes as she felt the now familiar sensation of the ground dropping out from under her. She held tightly to Jareth's arm for support, and when she felt the ground steady under her a moment later she slowly opened her eyes.

Grand just did not seem to be the right word when looking at the Sea King's palace. It was so complicated and ornate just to stare at that Sarah wasn't sure it existed at all. It looked like it belonged in miniature as a figurine. Jareth had not been wrong when he had told her that the other palaces of the Underground were much more flamboyant than the Castle beyond the Goblin City.

It appeared to be some combination of her Aboveground concepts of Indo-Islamic architecture, but that was still a far cry from the completely otherworldly structure standing before her.

There were four columns on each of the four corners of the main structure that were at least ten feet higher than the palace. There were small windows along the column until the top where there appeared to be a small sitting or standing area. There was a set of stairs that wrapped around the column like winding seaweed to allow someone to reach the sitting area. At the very top on the roof, the columns became fountain and adorned at the hilt of the column there was what looked like a mermaid from Sarah's vantage point. The water cascaded down, going over but not into the covered sitting area and flowed down to the ground through the windows.

The palace itself was certainly grand. It appeared at first glance to be larger than the Goblin King's, although Sarah knew appearances could be deceiving. The same fountains that were atop the columns were on the roof of the palace as well, sending a beautiful waterfall over the structure at all times. There was a somewhat ostentatious number of covered balconies for Sarah's taste. She supposed they were so people could appreciate the effect of standing underneath the water.

The stones of the castle had been decorated with an assortment of sea imagery. There were the more common creatures that Sarah recognized easily such as tropical fish, crustaceans and plant life. Then there were the more mythical sea dwellers such as the naiads, selkies, water horses and sea serpents. The carvings were very impressive, although Sarah found the imposing visage of the Sea King himself above the main entrance to be a bit much.

Sarah and Jareth had to climb a large number of stairs to reach the palace on the dais. As they climbed the water from the fountains ran around them. As exhausting as it was to trek up all those stairs in heels, Sarah couldn't deny that the effect was quite wonderful.

She had originally asked why they were attending Beltane at the Sea King's grounded palace, and Jareth had appeared somewhat surprised by her question.

"It would be seen as a more than rude, but almost a hostile act towards the guests."

"Because it would be underwater? I thought your kind had ways of getting to the palace anyways?" Sarah questioned, still confused.

"Yes, but it is still a fortress and protected. To keep unwanted guests from popping in unannounced, one cannot access the sea palace without the assistance of the king himself or one of his sons. They cannot leave without their assistance, either. We are fae, Sarah; we do not breathe underwater. Asking guests to converge at the sea palace would be akin to asking my guests to run the Labyrinth in order to attend."

"Oh, I suppose I didn't really think of it that way. But I mean you could probably magic guests from the entrance of the Labyrinth to the castle if you wanted, couldn't you?"

"Yes, and that is generally what I do when I am the host. I set up a temporary pathway through the Labyrinth that will take them straight to the castle in that event, making sure only recognized guests are admitted."

"That makes sense. The Sea King did not want to do something similar?"

Jareth smiled at her.

"This seemed neater in a great many ways. Besides, I think Dawon relishes the chance to spend some time on the ground, as much as he would never admit it."

As she and Jareth reached the dais Sarah began to get a bit nervous. She had never particularly enjoyed these large social gatherings Aboveground. One of the consequences of not being great with people was spending a lot of time alone by the punch bowl; she did not feel she would be fairing much better here.

Two guards greeted them at the entrance, each holding a spear taller than themselves in one hand. Sarah doubted they were fae as evidenced by the gills on the sides of their neck and face. She decided not to question how they were breathing out from underwater, knowing Jareth would likely just wave his hand and call it magic as usual.

They held out their hand to stop them, and Jareth responded evenly in an unfamiliar tongue to Sarah. The guards nodded and bowed low, gesturing them forward.

Jareth leaned over and whispered in her ear.

"Take my hand."

Sarah took it without hesitation. He squeezed it gently, and they proceeded towards the music.

Jareth had told her that the term feast was rather relative when it came to the fae. There would of course be food and drink aplenty at the occasion, but there would be no sit-down dinner. Instead human servants would intermingle, holding trays to take from with a main table set up with a number of rich treats upon it.

When they entered the ballroom Sarah could not help but let out a small gasp. The music was heady and primal. The sound of drums beat through the ballroom. The room seemed to pulse with the energy of it. Guests danced closely with each other on the floor, some dancing more traditional dances she almost recognized, others engaging in much more sexualized movements. Those that were not dancing were lounging about on large piles of cushions. Some were engaging in sexual acts; some just watched. Others sat at the tables scattered around the floor, indulging in large amounts of rich colourful foods. Drinks were being thrown back and glasses tossed over shoulders. Guests were wearing next to nothing, kissing various partners passionately while those who did not partake watched and laughed.

"This is not what I was expecting," Sarah whispered so just Jareth could hear her.

He grinned at her toothily.

"No, Sarah, this is Beltane. Were you expecting your dream ballet once more?"

"No, I… I don't know what I thought."

He gave a small chuckle at her obvious discomfort.

"That was always just a fantasy, Sarah. A fifteen year old girl has no place here with her toys and costumes."

She felt him squeeze her hand.

"I will not allow any harm to come to you, Sarah, I promise."

Sarah turned away from the revel to look at him and met his eyes. He had the same sincere look on his face he'd had before. She trusted him. Lightly, she squeezed his hand back.

"Good."

He nodded at her once, but Sarah saw the hint of a smile in his face.

"Come, we must greet the Sea King."

Sarah and Jareth strode past the dance floor to where the Sea King was sitting on a large throne in the center of the room. The throne was made of what appeared to be carved water. Not ice, but literally water that had been fashioned into the shape of a throne and then had similar sea creature designs as the front of the castle carved into it. Sarah figured someone else might find this impressive, but she just found it a bit ridiculous. What was wrong with a plane wooden or metal throne anyways?

The Sea King was lithe in form much like the Goblin King, and both had very striking, otherworldly features. Where the Goblin King's eyes were mismatched, the Sea King's eyes were the color of the greenest sea. His hair was not wild like Jareth's but worn long to his waist. It was also not as blonde as the Goblin King's and appeared to have tinges of green in it. He was dressed in a turquoise shirt open to his navel that seemed to flow gracefully with his movements. A three-pointed trident crown sat upon his head, and he wore a similar trident pendant around his neck. What was interesting to Sarah was that his pendant, unlike Jareth's, had no center.

The Sea King was surrounded by plates and plates of food and drink and several human servants lying in his lap, feeding him.

Jareth bowed slightly when he reached the Sea King's throne, and Sarah gave a curtsy, bowing her head.

"Your Majesty, we thank you for the pleasure of attending such a grand feast this Beltane eve."

The Sea King waved the servants from his lap and stood up to give a jovial bow back at them.

"And to you, Your Majesty. Rise, of course. I wish to see the face of your guest."

Sarah raised her head slowly to meet the Sea King's eyes. The Sea King grinned at her, taking her hand to place a light kiss upon it, his eyes never leaving hers for a second.

"Ah, the beauteous Sarah. I cannot tell you how I have longed to see you with my own eyes."

He tilted her chin with the tips of his fingers.

"You are indeed worthy of a king."

Sarah decided instantly that she did not like the Sea King. There was a particular hardness and glint to his eyes that made her very uneasy. Jareth was undoubtedly cruel at times, but Sarah knew this was different.

"Thank you, Your Majesty. I like to think so, too."

The Sea King let out a great bark of laughter.

"You were right, old friend! She does have a spark!"

The Sea King clapped Jareth on the back.

"But come, Jareth, I should like to introduce you to a few of the guests. One of whom has been asking after you since she arrived…"

Jareth glanced at Sarah briefly.

"Sarah, I am going to walk with Dawon. Why don't you have a seat at some of the tables, dance with some of the guests if you wish."

She was ready to protest when she met Jareth's eyes. He was not instructing; he was asking. It was just for one night, she reminded herself. She nodded and went to find a seat as far away from the rest of the revelers as possible.

Sarah had been instructed not to eat or drink anything unless Jareth had said it was fine first. Most of the food and drink would be spiked with various spells and concoctions designed to enhance the experience of the guests. For the fae, the effects were controllable. Jareth was strong enough to throw the effect off completely if he wished, but for Sarah, she would be completely at the mercy of the spell. Jareth would be able to tell her which food and drink had the effect placed on them after tasting it but warned her that her diet for the evening would likely be rather limited. Sarah didn't particularly mind given that her last experience with unexpected faerie food seemed to haunt her still.

She tried to make eye contact with the servants, trying to convey that she was not like this. She was one of them. But none of them would meet her eye. Sarah wished that they would come and talk to her. She almost missed the company of regular folk like her, but Sarah knew that these were humans born and bred in the Underground. Nobody here was really like her.

Sarah watched Jareth intermingle with the other guests. He appeared so natural and completely in his element. He danced a few of the more conservative dances with the women, and Sarah saw how many of them fawned over him. Men would come up to her and ask her to dance, but after accepting a couple she no longer felt up to it. Just as well, she didn't want to make a misstep and wind up accidentally a participant in the risqué dances that were taking place.

Sarah was watching Jareth laugh with a beautiful blonde fae dressed in what Sarah assumed was supposed to pass as a dark blue dress, but really appeared as scraps of fabric pasted onto the relevant sections of her body when she felt a hand on her shoulder.

The Sea King was standing behind her smiling and extended her a champagne flute.

"No thank you, Your Majesty. I am not terribly thirsty."

The Sea King raised an eyebrow questioningly.

"You have not eaten a single thing all evening nor have you had a sip to drink. Do you not care for my selection?"

She shook her head.

"I'm sorry, Sire. You must excuse my rudeness, I am not much for faerie food."

The Sea King smiled and quickly swallowed the contents of the flute. He placed in it on the table and offered her his hand.

"Then perhaps a walk with the hosting king, fair Sarah, if your enjoyments are not to be found here?"

Sarah watched Jareth lead the blonde fae onto the dance floor.

"That would be lovely."

She took the Sea King's hand and allowed him to lead her out onto the balcony.

The water flow from the fountains on the roof was much lovelier at night, Sarah decided. The water was lit up and illuminated the balcony in a soft glow. If it weren't for the sound of the music and laughter behind her, Sarah could almost imagine she was standing behind a waterfall.

Sarah turned towards the Sea King and removed her hand from his once they were safely out of sight from the ballroom.

"Okay, Sea King, what's the plan?"

The Sea King looked momentarily confused.

"I'm afraid I do not follow."

"You obviously brought me out here for a reason, to a quieter place away from the rest of the guests, so let's have it."

The Sea King dropped the pretence and smiled at her.

"Oh I do like you, Sarah. Seeing as how we're being so forward with each other, you have permission to call me Dawon."

Sarah raised her eyebrows in surprise.

"I was explicitly told not to."

The Sea King scoffed.

"By whom? Jareth? I would not worry about him. In some ways he will always be much more old world than I am. Prone to formalities and much more closed off – do you find that lovely, Sarah?"

She crossed her arms defensively in front of her chest.

"I think we can drop the lovelies and beauteouses now,  _Dawon_. Make your point."

The Sea King strode lazily over to her and tugged at a strand of her hair.

"Do you know just how long he's been waiting for you, Sarah?"

Sarah glared at the Sea King and took a step back from him, but he stepped forward to match her.

"Yes."

The Sea King raised his eyebrows in surprise.

"Now would that be because you were waiting for him as well?"

Sarah pulled her hair from the Sea King's fingers

"No. I had – have a life Aboveground."

"Oh yes, I'm sure you did," the Sea King teased. "But what of it now? Now that you have seen-" and with this he gestured back towards the ballroom where the festivities continued "-all that the Underground can offer you?"

Sarah rolled her eyes.

"What, you mean that party? That's supposed to be 'all the Underground' can offer me? I'm not here for the so-called luxury, Sea King."

Now the Sea King grinned truly.

"No, of course not. You're here for the magic. The thing you were just  _dying_  to be a part of."

"That is part of it," Sarah conceded, "but it's not the only reason I came back."

"Not for him, surely?" The Sea King mocked.

Sarah hesitated.

"No, not for him."

"You seem unsure of this now."

Sarah frowned at the Sea King.

"Why the interest?"

The Sea King threw his hands up and laughed.

"Because it is fun!"

The smile completely dropped, and his face suddenly turned serious again.

"And let's just say… I have a personal interest as well."

Sarah's eyes narrowed at the king.

"Towards me or him?"

Mirth returned to the Sea King's eyes.

"Neither. I'm simply interested to see if the Goblin King can succeed thirteen restless years later. Succeed where he assured me he would."

"What do you mean?"

"I was not kidding when I told you he has been waiting for you. He would never speak of you to me of course, but I have my ways. He swore once he found you he would never let you go. He would then kiss you first chance he got. Not for love, but for obsession, my dear. There is something very interesting about you, Sarah Williams; I can practically feel it humming beneath your skin. I wonder if the Goblin King yet knows what it is. I wonder if you do."

The Sea King closed the gap between them and cupped Sarah's face in his hands.

"I wonder if I could taste it on you."

Sarah pulled away from the Sea King's hands, trying to place some distance between them. She took a step back and felt the water from the fountain drench her backside.

The Sea King stared at her for a moment, halfway drenched in his waterfall.

"Only the Goblin King I see."

Sarah leaned her head back defiantly and allowed the water to wash over the rest of her head. She emerged dripping and now cupped her hands to the Sea King's face.

"Our conversation has come to an end. Thank you for the celebration Your Majesty."

The Sea King gave her a perfect smile and bowed.

"The pleasure was all mine, Sarah."

The Sea King retreated back into the party. Once Sarah was sure he was out of earshot she rolled her head to stare at the darkened balcony adjacent to hers.

"Are you going to come out now?" she asked in the balcony's direction, amused.

"You seemed to be doing just fine on your own."

The Goblin King walked in from the shadows to be lit up by the waterfall. He spun and appeared behind her, taking in her now soaked frame.

"Why is it that you always seem to be lurking when I'm completely wet," she questioned him teasingly.

He raised an amused eyebrow at her.

"You make it a habit to become unnecessarily drenched, it appears."

"Then remind me not to anymore. It's freezing out here."

The Goblin King swiftly removed his cloak and placed it around her shoulders.

"Here."

Sarah looked at the cloak, confused. How strange it was to be wrapped in the very same cloak that the Goblin King had first worn to intimidate her back when she was fifteen.

"Jareth, can we make a deal?"

Jareth's eyes glinted with pleasure.

"I do so love a deal, Sarah."

"If I promise to tell you something I know you've wanted to know for a long time, will you tell me something I've wanted to know?"

The pleasure vanished from Jareth's face.

"That would depend."

"On the secrets in question?"

Jareth nodded. "Yes."

Sarah sighed deeply, deciding to take the risk.

"If you tell me what is so interesting about me, what's special about me, then I will tell you what I know to have happened to our memories and why it happened the way it did."

For a long time Jareth said nothing. Sarah was worried that from what little she told him, he had already figured it out and was deciding her punishment. Sarah doubted there was anything to be gained from speaking or pleading her case at the moment.

"I will agree," he finally responded, and Sarah let out a breath of relief, "on two conditions. The first being that we do not discuss it tonight."

Sarah nodded in agreement.

"And the second?"

The Goblin King gripped her wrist and jerked her against him.

Sarah could feel the heat of his body warm hers, and he pressed against her frame.

"This," he breathed into her ear.

He grabbed her mouth with his and began to kiss her as though it was the last thing he'd ever do. He tugged at her bottom lip with his pointed teeth and growled what she could have almost sworn was the word  _mine_. She pulled at him, taking this moment for what it was, her fingers digging into his back, clawing at him. His hands pulled in her hair and ran up her back.

 _He loves my back_  she thought. She was clawing at him now, moving her hands to scrape along his chest, feeling both his heart and pendant beat. He pulled at her hair and scratched at her skin, and it hurt. She was glad it hurt. They were not tender; they were not affectionate, instead they focused on taking. Taking everything they could from each other in that moment.

She felt him press her against the edge of the balcony. The water beginning to trickle down her skin. They pressed against each other much tighter, much more urgently, desperately clinging to one another as if they were the last thing the other would ever feel. She felt like she was drowning, and he was her air, something she needed in that moment more than she'd ever thought possible. His hands making their way under the bust line of her dress, her biting at his lips, tugging at the hem of his shirt. Still pulling and scratching at each other's skin. Suddenly she was so hot, it was almost more than she could stand. He thrust against her once, and she moaned into his kiss. She began to war with herself.

_Please don't let him take my clothes off. Please let him take my clothes off. If he does I'll be finished. If he doesn't I'll be begging._

She arched into his movements; their fabric was so thin as it was…

He bit hard at her bottom lip one last time and then quickly pulled away from her, both of them panting and weakened with desire.

Sarah was so tempted to grab him and make him finish what he had insisted on starting. But she knew that it was done now. That had been a time out, a preemptive reward for giving away their secrets, but they were back now.

She would not allow herself to succumb so easily and just be another reveler at Beltane, having the Goblin King on the balcony of the Sea King's palace.

She tilted her head back, allowing the cool water to rinse over her. Jareth tucked his shirt back into his pants and picked up his cloak, which had somehow fallen by the wayside.

Without a word he offered her his hand back towards the festivities. She took it silently and allowed him one turn on the dance floor with her, neither of them taking their eyes of the other for a second. She felt her body pulsing with each movement, and she could seem the remnants of their encounter in the intensity of his stare. She wondered if any of the other guests at the feast had noticed the newly made, long scratches down her back. She felt certain the Sea King did. He offered for them to leave after the dance, and she heartily agreed.

As they walked to leave Sarah leaned in close to the Goblin King's ear.

"Can you taste it? Is there anything to taste?"

He cast a quick glance at her from the corner of his eye.

"Yes."

What had happened here would not be coming back with them. They were finished with Beltane.


	19. Chapter 19

It was getting warmer in the Labyrinth. The sun rose higher and stayed longer, and the kingdom prepared for the coming summer. The vendors in the Goblin Market's fruits had changed to those of the warmer months, and the air was becoming sticky and hot.

Sarah was restless. She continued her search for a solution, any solution, to the lost memories outside in the Labyrinth and inside in the castle library. But after more than a month of finding nothing she was getting past frustrated. The Labyrinth was almost fully her own now. She never worried about where she was going or where the path would lead. The stones recognized her, and the goblins would grant her almost any request. She was their Sarah, and they were her goblins. Sarah realized their loyalty was won, not given, which she had earned when she mastered the Labyrinth. Not her first trip Underground, when she'd only solved the Labyrinth, no, now she had made it hers. She could tell even Jareth was impressed with her though he would never say anything.

Sarah saw Jareth every day. They had begun taking their meals together, and would slip into an easy conversation about their days. He would ask what new areas of the Labyrinth she had explored, and she would inquire about various bits of information and history of the Underground, everything she had not already gained from her research in the library. Neither of them gave mention to the bargain that had been made between them. But she did not for one moment believe he had forgotten or decided to ignore their agreement. She knew he would speak to her when it suited him. If she was not so concerned about the conversation in question she'd be much more annoyed about this fact. There was a new aspect to their relationship. They both knew that what they wanted from the other was much more than the cordial dinner companionship. Sarah had to finally admit to herself that as much as it worried and unnerved her, she wanted Jareth. She wanted to feel that fire she felt whenever he kissed her. She wanted the excitement his smallest touch gave her. She wanted all of him.

Sarah laid face down on the largest couch in the library, books piled around her and a large one currently covering her head. She moaned loudly as Hilly waddled past her with another stack of books to search through.

"Hilly, I'm in trouble."

Even with her eyes currently staring into the abyss of the couch cushion Sarah knew Hilly was rolling her eyes at her.

"What did I tells ya."

"Hilly…" she groaned from between the cushions.

Sarah heard the stack of books fall down with a thud.

"I tolds ya, I saids, didn't I? I saids spending that much time with the King, well no good can come of it. But dids ya listen? Nope, you was quite content, quite pleased with yourself to carry on the way you did. Stupider than a goblin peddlin' dung, you are."

"Hilly, I –"

The dwarf pulled the book off of Sarah's head and whacked her with it.

"Ow hey!"

"You think you knew better. You thought you could play the game. Foolish girl, there's no winning that game."

Sarah sat up and grabbed the book from Hilly's hand before she had a chance to whack her with it again.

"I did not think I could win…I just thought I knew what game I was playing at all."

Hilly huffed and began to stack the books she'd dropped.

"Shows what you know, don't it?"

Sarah flopped dramatically back onto the couch.

"You know, if I ever get to Hoggle I'm going to introduce you two. I think you would get along splendidly, what with your mutual belief in my ignorance."

"Even if you'd known, you'd have always made the same mistakes, I think. You didn't come back blind, girl."

"It's nothing to do with that, and I didn't come back here for him."

Hilly tossed a book at Sarah, but she was expecting it this time and caught it.

"You says that so often it don't even sounds like words anymore. Yeah yeah you didn't come back here for him, fine. But I've seen the way you looks at him and the way he looks at you. Your goose is cooked."

Sarah flopped onto her belly again replacing the book atop her head.

"You know just once, I would like things to be on my terms. To go my way."

* * *

The next day Sarah leaned against the stone wall bunching up stale pieces of bread into small balls. Tossing them into the air the bird craned his neck to catch each one.

"Alexander?"

Toss

"Nope!"

Swallow

"Murdoch?"

Toss

"No!"

Swallow

"Hogshead?"

Toss

"Nuh-uh"

Swallow

"I don't see why this is necessary, he's never needed a name before."

Sarah glanced up at the Wiseman from her bread crumbs.

"Well he's the last creature I know of in the Labyrinth without a name, and I'm determined to find him one. I can't just keep calling him 'bird hat;' it's rude."

"Ferdinand?"

"Absolutely not!"

"Well it would appear you are running low on bread now, Milady."

"Then I will just have to come back tomorrow, and the next day and the next until your friend here decides what his name is."

"What about bread? I like bread!"

The Wiseman sighed and reached up to flick his hat.

"I am not having a hat called 'bread.' Keep thinking."

Sarah laughed and tossed the last bit of bread to the as of yet unnamed hat.

"That's all I've got for today. Like I said, I'll be back tomorrow with a new list. Until then I'm off to the library."

The Wiseman puffed on his pipe with interest.

"Still searching for that magical solution to all your problems then?"

Sarah dusted off her leggings.

"Unless you've got any other ideas, Wiseman."

She was still angry at him for his deception. She'd chosen to let the fact that the Wiseman had given her book to the Goblin King go for now, as that was back in her possession anyways. For the time being, she had called a truce. As much as she hated to admit it, she needed the Wiseman; he seemed to know more about the Labyrinth and the Underground than perhaps any other citizen, even its king. But she had more than learned her lesson about trusting him.

"It would appear that once a runner, always a runner. But I wonder what you will do once you get to the center."

Sarah cast him a glance as she pulled her hair down from its holder.

"I was once told that once I got to the center, I'd never get out again. But I left; I'm proof that this is not the case."

The Wiseman chuckled under his breath.

"Yet here you stand, trying to shape this world back to as though you'd never left."

"So it would seem, Wiseman. The people may not remember me, but you do, and the Labyrinth does. I think it recognizes me as its champion."

The Wiseman shrugged

"Perhaps. It recognizes  _you_ , most certainly."

Sarah rolled her eyes at the Wiseman's typical cryptic answers. She'd stopped spending so much time trying to interpret his words and instead just kept them in mind.

"Noted, now if you'll excuse me -"

The Wiseman held up a hand to stop her

"I was told to inform you that when you were finished in the Labyrinth today the Goblin King has requested a meeting with you."

Sarah threw up her arms in disbelief

"You waited all this time to tell me? Did he say when or where he would like this meeting to take place?"

The Wiseman shook his head, unconcerned.

"He simply instructed me to inform you before heading back up to the castle. He mentioned you should be able to find him rather easily."

Sarah rolled her eyes at the pair of them – honestly, completely useless creatures half the time.

Sarah bid her goodbyes and promised again to return tomorrow with more breadcrumbs and names to run through for the bird hat. The Labyrinth's twists and turns were familiar to her now, and the stones bent for her, leading her to the castle in next to no time.

She began to wander the halls in search of Jareth's study which was presumably where he intended to meet her. She knew it was towards the east wing of the castle and started walking in that direction when something caught her attention. Sarah stopped moving and listened, unsure if what she was hearing was real. She closed her eyes, and there it was. The bars of a soft melody whispered through the hallways, it was barely audible from where she was standing, but there nonetheless. Sarah began to follow the sound down the hallways to a large wooden door with no handle. She placed her hands on the wood and felt the vibrations of the music reverberating through it.

"Open for me please," she spoke softly to the door, pressing her forehead against the wood.

The door vanished, and Sarah stepped slowly into a room filled with every instrument imaginable. There were trombones, steel drums, harps, accordions and mandolins. But for the moment Sarah did not care about any of them; her full attention was focused on the grand piano in the middle of the room and the Goblin King playing it. His eyes were closed as his gloved fingers moved effortlessly over the keys, playing the song by heart. It was exactly as she'd remembered it.

Sarah walked closer to the piano and put her hand on the Goblin King's shoulder. He slowly brought his hands up from the piano and turned his head slightly towards her.

"I see you got my message."

"Yes," Sarah was more breathless than she would have liked. Hearing it again, it had put her off. "You played well."

"Thank you."

He gestured for her to sit on the bench beside him, and she hesitantly complied.

"What do you do with all these instruments?" she asked, trying to change the subject before it could even begin.

"I play them," he responded simply.

"All of them?" she questioned, surprised.

"Yes."

Sarah looked around at the assortment of instruments in the room again with astonishment.

"But how?"

"I have a lot of time on my hands."

Sarah snapped her mouth closed. She would sometimes forget just how long he lived and how much further past her lifespan he would continue to exist.

"I can't even play one of them."

Jareth raised an eyebrow at her questioning.

"Would you like to?"

Sarah looked at him confused

"Yes, I mean, of course, but I took the violin when I was younger, and I was terrible at it. My mother told me I had to stop for the sake of hers and my father's ears."

Jareth chuckled and slid her down the bench closer towards him. He gently placed her hands on the keys and spaced out her fingers.

"There now." He lightly placed his hands on top of hers. Even through his gloves she could feel the heat that always seemed to radiate off him. "I want you to close your eyes, Sarah."

Sarah turned to look at him skeptically. This was clearly a mistake as the bench was much too small, and she was sitting much to close. She found herself staring directly into his gaze.

"How am I supposed to play if I can't even see the keys?"

Jareth smiled at her slightly, and she felt him run his fingers slowly up hers.

"You don't need to worry about them right now; I will assist you. Close your eyes."

Sarah did as he asked, and she felt his breath against her cheek.

"Now, the song I just played, can you hear it in your head?"

"Every day," she answered without hesitation.

It was small – if her eyes were open she doubt she would have seen it – but she felt his fingers tense just the smallest amount with her answer. So quickly it was gone, and she knew he was smiling.

"Good. Now, I want you to hear it very clearly, exactly how it sounds, then just let your fingers move."

Sarah nodded and felt a small brush of air by her cheek as her hands started playing the right keys as if by magic. The notes kept perfectly to the tempo in her head and she began to hum softly under her breath.

_There's such a sad love_

_Deep in your eyes_

_A kind of pale jewel_

_Open and closed within your eyes_

_I'll place the sky_

_Within your eyes_

She could hear the notes on the piano, it sounded right, his hands were on top, guiding hers, but she was the one playing. She felt his lips brush against her cheek.

"You're doing very well."

A clank as her hand slipped and banged one of the keys pulling her out of her reverie.

She slid down to the other side of the bench and shook her head.

"I'm sorry; I just … really hate that song."

He slowly got up from the piano bench and offered her his hand.

"Perhaps another time then."

She took his hand and allowed him to lead her from the room. She assumed they would head back towards his study, but instead he began to lead her out towards the Labyrinth.

"Where are we going?" she questioned him

"I promised you a gift for accompanying me to Beltane, did I not?"

She tried to hide her smile, but truthfully she had forgotten about the promised gift. She was surprised he was still willing to offer it to her with how she had treated the Sea King. He hadn't reprimanded her for her impertinence and blatant disregard for the royal order, but she was very aware he could have.

Her smile faded completely when Sarah saw where exactly Jareth was taking her. If the Labyrinth parted for her, it completely changed its course for the Goblin King. They had barely stepped out of the castle when Sarah found him leading her straight into the Forest of Eternal Night.

Sarah's breath caught in her throat. She felt Jareth squeeze her hand, and she turned to look at him. He was smiling at her.

"I have told you, Sarah, I will not let any harm come to you. I promise."

She squeezed his hand back and took a deep breath. She trusted him.

He led her through the woods for a while at a walk. It was different from her last two trips through the forest. Previously she'd been a runner accompanied by her friends, completely following the trees wherever they would lead her, getting swept up in a crystal dream and being lifted up over walls to escape, then the time before allowing herself to get cocky, sweeping through the trees without a care. Now watching how the trees parted for Jareth, how he laid his hand on their branches and tree trunks reverently, she saw that he respected the forest, and in turn the forest respected him. She also remembered how his mother had been able to part the trees so easily. The way he stepped gracefully through the woods as patches of light appeared for him, it was clear he had some of her gift and love of nature.

She never dared to let go of his hand, but slowly she began to feel safer and able to appreciate the beauty of the woods. The trees seemed to be alight with an almost unearthly glow, the leaves much greener and thicker than she'd ever seen. Every so often she could swear she'd caught a glimpse of a nymph of some sort at the trunk of the trees, but when she'd look again they were gone. Jareth explained to her that some of the trees in this forest were connect to hamadryads. These dryads were tied to their trees, and should the tree be harmed, they were harmed in turn. Therefore they were very protective of the forest and made great guardians of its pathways.

"Will I be able to meet them?" she asked Jareth looking sideways carefully at some of the trees.

He shook his head, his eyes darting from tree to tree.

"No, they seldom reveal themselves to anyone. Even I have scarcely managed to draw them out, and they are quite familiar with me."

"This forest sits on the boundary between worlds you know." Jareth looked at her, crocking his head slightly to the side.

"No, I didn't." She gently laid her hand on the trunk of a tree. She could swear she could feel something moving underneath the surface. Reminding herself of just what forest she was in, she was probably right.

"Yes, the entire Goblin Kingdom actually borders it, but there are places Aboveground where the forest will appear. A child might wander too far off the path and find themselves here."

"They're just children," Sarah said hesitantly not wanting to start another argument, "are they happy here? When they could be with their families Above?"

Jareth smirked slightly.

"Are you asking for you or for them, Sarah? I don't know of every kingdom, nor do I know of every human. But I do know that most seem quite content with their lifestyles here."

Sarah looked at him askance.

"They're slaves."

Jareth shrugged and easily plucked a berry from an outstretched branch popping it into his mouth.

"Yes, but that doesn't mean they can't be happy. They don't worry about any of the silly problems that seem to consume your lot's heads Aboveground. They have a roof over their head, clothes on their back and food at their table. Most of the time, that's enough. Nobody comes here unless they want to Sarah. They couldn't."

"I came here."

Jareth stopped and released her hand from his.

"Yes, and need I remind you that both instances were your choice. Are you still going to deny that you want to be here?"

Sarah stopped and looked at where they were standing. In the middle of the deepest and darkest forest she'd ever seen, he'd stopped them directly under a patch of sunlight. The trees seemed to sparkle when the light hit them, and even the air in this forest was sweeter.

"No, of course not. I…I love it here."

"Is that all?" he asked her so quietly under his breath, that it was almost permissible for her to feign not having heard him.

"I love it here," she repeated, this time more firmly.

He stared at her, and for a moment Sarah was certain he was going to kiss her again. Instead he simply nodded once and brought his finger to his lips. Quietly he brushed away the branches to a clearing surrounded by rocks. He leaned over to whisper in her ear.

"Your gift, Sarah."

It was then Sarah saw it. Coming out from between the rocks holding a branch of berries was a familiar red beast. Much more wild-looking than the last time she'd seen him to be sure, but there was no mistaking it was Ludo.

Sarah gasped and clasped her hand over her mouth.

"You found him!" she quietly exclaimed to the Goblin King, throwing her hands around his neck to embrace him. He held her back tightly, and she could feel the curve of his smile on her cheek.

"Yes, he's been living in the forest for years now. It seems the creatures of the Goblin Kingdom were frightened of him and chased him into the forest. It appears it was mutual as he is likewise frightened by them and quite satisfied to stay within the forest away from them."

Sarah released her hold on him and turned back towards the clearing where Ludo sat contentedly between the rocks eating his berries.

"He won't know you."

Sarah nodded.

"I know, but I have to talk to him. I have to try."

"Of course you do."

He brushed away a few more of the branches, and Sarah climbed through the hole he made. Slowly Sarah approached her former friend, not wanting to scare him off. She'd thought about what she'd say to them, any of them, if she managed to find them for weeks now, and yet no words came to mind.

"Ludo?" she asked softly to the rock caller.

Ludo brought his head up and looked around. Seeing the girl standing in the clearing, he jumped up and began braying. The rocks started to roll towards Sarah, and she held up her hands defensively.

"No, no Ludo! It's me! I mean, I'm Sarah. I'm a friend! Please, I don't want to hurt you!"

Ludo stopped the rocks and looked down at her.

"Sarah?"

Sarah nodded and put her hands down.

"Yes, it's Sarah. I didn't mean to scare you. I'm just… I'm a friend. I promise."

Ludo tilted his head, considering.

"Sarah…friend?"

Sarah could have nearly cried with happiness.

"Yes, Ludo, I'm your friend."

Ludo began walking towards her, and Sarah bridged the gap. Ludo bent down his head to look at her and then suddenly patted her on the head, smiling.

"Sarah friend."

Sarah started to cry and wrapped her arms around the great beast.

"Ludo I am so sorry, I have missed you so much and it's all my fault. Everything that's happened is my fault. I ruined it, and now you have to live in the forest."

"Forest home," Ludo replied, patting her head.

"Ludo, do you like it here?" Sarah looked up at him, surprised.

"Like forest… forest home."

She wiped her tears on her sleeve and smiled.

"I'm glad you like it here, Ludo. But it wasn't supposed to be like this. We were friends once, and if you're willing, I'd like to be friends again?"

Ludo nodded and hugged Sarah closer.

"Yes. Sarah friend."

Sarah felt a wave of relief wash over her. It was more than she had hoped for. He forgave her, wanted to be her friend again. Sarah knew he didn't really know what he was forgiving, but she wasn't sure how to explain it with the Goblin King standing a few feet away. It would have to do for now, and she could cross Ludo off her list of those she needed to apologize to.

She didn't stay too long as she thought it best to build up Ludo's trust slowly; she didn't want to let him down again. She sat and shared some of his berries with him and told him of her first trip to the Underground and how they became friends. She explained how he would come visit her afterwards with Hoggle and Sir Didymus. Ludo didn't know who either of them were anymore which, although expected, made Sarah incredibly sad. She hadn't just taken away her relationship with them, but all of their relationships with each other. Sir Didymus had called Ludo his brother; now they wouldn't even recognize each other.

Sarah got up to leave and gave Ludo a light kiss on the cheek. Although she expected better of him now, she was still pleased when the ground didn't open up to drop herself and Ludo straight into the Bog. She didn't cry as she left him – this wouldn't be the last time they would see each other, and even if it was, she had said what mattered.

The Goblin King was waiting patiently, sitting under one of the trees with his eyes closed. Sarah was sure he wasn't sleeping, but she still felt guilty for disturbing him. She moved to sit down next to him against the tree and closed her eyes.

"Did you enjoy your gift, Sarah?"

Sarah smiled and brushed her hair out of her eyes.

"Very much, thank you."

"I have sent some goblin envoys to search the outer wall of the Labyrinth for that gardener friend of yours. So far they've yet to locate him, but I trust they will eventually. Goblins are especially good at finding, especially those who don't want to be found in the first place."

As excited as she was by the thought of seeing her first friend in the Underground, she knew it had to come with a price. She opened her eyes to consider the very old, very powerful and very puzzling monarch peacefully sitting beside her.

"Why are you doing this?" she asked challengingly.

He opened his eyes to meet hers.

"I should think that would be obvious."

Sarah took a deep breath.

"Because … of me?"

He smiled at her.

"Yes,  _for_  you, Sarah."

"But why?" she pressed him.

He shrugged and pulled a leaf from the ground to twirl between his fingers.

"I knew it would make you happy."

He dropped the leaf and looked back towards her, suddenly serious.

"And because this I could do."

Sarah shook her head and began to laugh uncontrollably. She put her head in her hands to contain the giggles, but it wasn't working. Jareth stared at her, slightly alarmed.

"Sarah, what is so funny?"

She stopped suddenly and looked at him, his face only inches from hers, why did he always have to be so close? She hated it. She hated knowing he would offer her the world if she told him she desired it. She hated keeping secrets from him, and she hated even more that she felt guilty for doing so.

"You're very old."

"Yes," he replied evenly.

"You've seen centuries of history both Above and Underground."

"I have."

"And have you seen love, then?"

His eyes narrowed slightly at her.

"I've seen great love."

Sarah spared a thought for all those great loves of her history books, Heloise and Abelard, Paris and Helen, Tristan and Isolde – she very much doubted he was speaking of any of them.

"What's the longest love in the world?"

He smiled at her then. One of his wicked smiles that glinted with his pointed incisors.

"Mine," he answered simply.

"Liar," Sarah scoffed in disbelief and went to stand up, but he grabbed her by the wrist, pulling her back down beside him.

His smile had vanished, and he was looking at her with the same intensity he had at Beltane. Sarah knew what was coming, and she decided this time she would be the one to choose it. She leaned in slightly and felt him inch towards her; she bridged the small gap between them and kissed him. He placed his hand on her cheek, and she moved hers to entwine it in his hair. She had always loved his ridiculous hair. It was not like their previous embraces, fast and passionate. They kissed each other slowly as though there would never be a need to do anything else. She wanted to know his kiss when it was her beginning, when it wasn't bent on taking, and she found her reaction was much the same. That there would be nothing that could ever hope to erase this moment from her memory; no spell would ever be strong enough to take the feel of his lips from hers. She pulled her hand from his hair, and he withdrew from the kiss slightly keeping his hand on her cheek.

"When you can live forever, you have no need to measure time. I can turn it and shift it as I desire. But every second I lived, taunted with the promise of your return, it felt longer than every second that came before it. You are not aware of time until you are powerless against it. So yes, Sarah, the longest love in the world is mine."

Sarah shook her head in disbelief.

"So you've loved me all this time? Without even knowing me? Just some nameless and faceless girl?"

He smiled and kissed the corner of her mouth gently.

"No, I did not know that girl. I knew only that I needed to find her. To bring her back here where she belonged. I know you, and I have known the absence of you even if I could not recognize it for what it was. I will not return to that, the waiting, searching and needing." He paused slightly, considering. "I didn't love you at fifteen; I didn't love you when I found you."

What was unspoken but Sarah understood was,  _I love you here and now_.

"That's not love. You only loved me because you couldn't know me," she said, straightening up away from him. This was much too dangerous a conversation, and he was much too close.

"Perhaps not, but it is all I know."

Sarah stood up and walked back and forth for a moment before pressing her forehead against the trunk of a nearby tree. It would be easier to say this with her back to him, without him staring at her with those damned eyes of his.

"I don't… I have known love in my life, Jareth. But here is what they don't tell you about love. Love… it comes with a little bit of death. No sooner can you love another than you sacrifice a piece of yourself. When that love dies, as all loves eventually do, so does that piece of you. You can't get it back; it's gone forever." She turned back to face him, suddenly much stronger. She found him standing against his tree waiting for her to continue. "The reason I know this is when you kiss me, I feel like I'm dying. Which tells me that, if I want to keep all the parts of me exactly where they are, feeling exactly the way they do, I should never kiss you."

He raised a brow at her.

"And yet, I think you will again."

She sighed deeply and let her head fall back against the tree.

"I've always known you'd be the death of me."

He walked towards her and offered her his hand.

"I think it is long past time you and I had another conversation."

She raised her head and took his hand.

"Yes, I think so."

He entwined his fingers with hers and began to lead her deeper into the forest.


	20. Chapter 20

The forest was always dark, and Sarah had difficulty seeing ahead even near the outskirts, but as Jareth led her further Sarah understood the true reason it was called the Forest of Eternal Night. If it weren't for Jareth's hold on her hand and his guidance, she had no doubt she'd be more than lost at this point. She couldn't even see him standing next to her anymore, but a squeeze of her hand reminded her that he there.

She didn't question how he could see; this was his forest after all. He must have walked these paths a thousand times.

In the complete absence of light, Sarah felt more and more of the forest. She could smell the damp earth mixed with an indefinable richness that she'd simply come to understand as the underlying scent of magic. She heard the trees rustling and at times, she was certain, talking. She heard the roots move on the ground, the call of the birds high in the top branches, the animals chasing each other over leaves. But Sarah didn't know if any of these sounds were real or just her mind playing tricks on her. She couldn't see with her eyes; she'd just have to believe they were there. Sarah understood the true purpose of the forest and why it was so dark then; it wasn't just to scare and capture children and lost wanderers – it was the forest for imagined things. The imagined scent, the feel of the earth here and how it was different. The imagined creatures that might be running past that tree she grazed with the tips of her fingers. The birds, they could be phoenixes or crows. The trees might be whispering, or perhaps it was only that she knew they could whisper, if they wanted to.

"First lesson," she thought to herself, "nothing is what it seems in this place."

A tug on her hand guiding her slightly to the left, keeping her on the path.

"Nothing – from deep dark woods to the Goblin Kings who rule them."

Sarah wished herself a gentler girl. Or even a smarter girl. A gentler girl would be quick to accept what Jareth was offering. A smarter girl would have been quicker to run. But Sarah couldn't leave anymore than she could simply take Jareth into her arms and promise him her undying love. She wanted to stop. More than anything she wanted to stop whatever was happening here between her and this Goblin King. But she didn't, and every time he caught her eye, every graze of his hand, reminded her why.

"Turn back, Sarah, before it's too late," she thought to herself. That bridge wasn't just crossed now; she'd damn near set fire to it.

"Fear me, love me, do as I say and I will be your slave."

Every time she thought about that moment she reached the same conclusion - what a stupid offer. She never wanted to fear him again; that was the whole point of defeating him in the first place, and how was she supposed to do as he said and have him still be her slave? Ridiculous. She was never tempted, not even once. Sure she wanted to dance with him at the ball and be swept away by the handsome king, what fifteen-year-old girl wouldn't? She just wanted that one moment, that one shining moment where she could pretend and look at the beautiful king. But she didn't want forever. Forever at fifteen meant six months, a year, graduation maybe. He would have been correct in his assessment of it being not long at all back then. But she was a woman grown now, and forever was more than some overdramatic statement of time.

After what felt like an hour – Sarah was uncertain how the lack of light was affecting her sense of time – Jareth pulled her to a stop. He did not let go of her hand but with his other produced a low-lighted crystal.

"Why didn't you just light one of those before?" she asked him while shielding her eyes with her hand. Despite its dimness, the light still strained her eyes in the pitch black.

"I did not need it until now. Besides the creatures of the forest react… poorly to light, and it is best to respect their wishes as much as possible."

Sarah tried to look around to see why they had stopped, but the crystal barely lighted the small area where they were standing. Jareth inclined his head towards what she had just assumed was the trunk of a large tree. He handed the crystal to Sarah.

"Hold it tightly," he instructed her.

His gloved hand swept over the overgrowth around the trunk to brush it away. Sarah could see that it wasn't a large tree after all but rather the branches of many trees coming together to appear as a solid base.

"This path has not been opened in nearly a thousand years." Jareth extended his palm towards her expectantly.

"I will need the knife, Sarah."

Sarah looked at him, surprised. "Knife?"

"Yes," he nodded, "the one in your boot."

Sarah let go of his hand and reached down into her boot to pull out the knife she had borrowed from the Wiseman many weeks ago now. She never felt too particularly inclined to return it given what had transpired between them.

She placed the knife in Jareth's palm.

"How did you even know I had this with me? I only grabbed it at the last minute today."

Jareth smiled.

"It is my knife, Sarah."

"No, it's the Wiseman's knife and now my knife."

He looked at her skeptically.

"You traded him for it?"

Sarah simply smiled back at him.

"I'm calling it a payout for personal damages."

Jareth raised an eyebrow at her response and then simply shrugged, beginning to hack away at the branches with the knife. They fell much more easily then they should have given the size of the blade in comparison to the size of the branches.

"Well the Wiseman had no rights to relinquish it to you as it is my knife Sarah, which I simply lent him."

"He didn't relinquish anything; I took it. Possession is nine tenths of the law Jareth."

"Which is convenient considering I currently have the knife."

"For now," she muttered under her breath, watching him chop away.

As the branches began to fall away she could faintly see from the light of the crystal that what they were covering was a large winding set of stone stairs. They were covered in moss and eye lichen and although they were obviously very old, appeared to still be quite strong and sturdy.

Jareth chopped away the last branch and tucked the knife into his belt, giving Sarah a pointed look as he did so. She offered him back the crystal, and he stared at it in his hand until it grew brighter. He gestured for her to follow him as he began to ascend the stairs. There was only room to walk single file, and the light of Jareth's crystal created a faint glow on the stairs and stone walls. They were covered in a sparkling substance that appeared to be glitter and more of the moss and lichen. It was a long climb, and neither she nor Jareth said a word during it. She wanted to ask where they were going but doubted she'd receive an answer even if she did.

Finally they reached the top of the stairs, and Sarah was blinded as a bright light hit her. Jareth took her hand and led her away from the top of the stairs, and when her eyes had relaxed some she opened them a crack to see where exactly she was standing.

It was another clearing, much brighter than any of the ones below the stairs and she realized they must be close to the tops of the trees now. It was perhaps the most stunning part of the forest she'd seen yet. All the light seemed to converge in this one clearing where darkness halted in its place all around it. Underneath the heel of her boot was a metal plate in the ground, and when she looked closer, she saw that it was in the design of a Cretan labyrinth, with what seemed to be the symbol of Jareth's pendant in the centre. Sarah also noticed that it stood in the centre of the clearing and in the middle of a large cracked line that ran down from one edge of the space to the other.

"Do you recognize it yet?" Jareth asked her from his place lounging on a log near the edge.

Sarah realized she did recognize it. The crack and the plate were new, but this was the same clearing where she'd seen Jareth's mother and father talking in her dream.

Sarah walked over and sat down next to Jareth. She reached under his shirt and pulled out his pendant, examining the design much more closely. It was warm to the touch with the centre spinning and glowing slightly. Sarah doubted she would have noticed this aspect of the pendant if she did not already know it was there. It was just a part of who Jareth was; his marker, his sovereignty.

He gently removed her hand from the pendant and strode over to stand directly on top of the metal plate.

"Are you wondering why I brought you here, Sarah?"

Sarah looked around at this little haven from the darkness, so hidden from the rest of the forest; she never would have found it on her own.

"No. I know you have your reasons."

Jareth looked surprised at that. She didn't wonder why. Every time she'd asked about his parents had resulted in him avoiding the topic at every turn. She'd pressed him repeatedly and continued digging for information on them on her own. Now suddenly he was willingly giving her access to them.

"He trusts me," Sarah thought. She really wished he wouldn't.

Jareth tapped the heel of his boot over the plate.

"As you might have noticed at Beltane, each sovereign in the Underground has his own sigil that they wear on their person at all times. This is the sigil of the Goblin Kingdom, but much more than that, it is a mark of warning." He gestured around the clearing grandly. "Everything you see here, from where the crack starts to where it stops is the eye of the storm. There is no magic here." He made a familiar gesture with his wrist and no crystal appeared there. "It is also the weakest spot in all the Underground, where the barriers between worlds are thinnest."

Sarah considered the crack under her heel. A split right down the middle. She wondered where in the Above she might find a similar marking.

"So you brought me here so that we might be on equal footing? No power to be had here?"

Jareth smiled wanly at her.

"No, not quite. Sarah, in order to give you what was promised I must start at the beginning, and this story is rather long."

Jareth sighed deeply and came to sit down beside her. Sarah had never seen Jareth so solemn, and she gently placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Look, Jareth, your parents are your parents, and I don't particularly like talking about mine either… so if you just want to skip to the end I won't mind."

Jareth shook his head and put his hand over his pendant, warming his fingers.

"This pendant and this place were both created by my mother. The crack and the separation by my father."

Jareth removed Sarah's hand from his shoulder and placed it alongside his on his pendant.

"What you feel in the center of the pendant is the power of dreams, Sarah. Or more specifically, my dreams and the dreams of the Labyrinth itself. I keep my dreams close to me at all times, but as a result they are always out of reach. I cannot see them, I cannot touch them and I cannot know them. Not unless I bring them forth into a physical holding."

Sarah looked up at him. "The crystal in your study."

Jareth nodded. "Yes. Your dreams and mine have long been interwoven, Sarah. When you stepped into the Sea of Dreams… there should have been little I could do to save you. But I believe the Sea of Dreams reacted to you much the same that the rest of the Labyrinth and the Goblin Kingdom has. It saw a power in you, Sarah; it recognized you for who you were and instead of drowning you, it provided you with something I had hoped to keep from you for a while longer. The way back."

Sarah removed her hand from the pendant. She remembered when he had come into her bedroom that first night, so many weeks ago now. As he stood above her, she had wanted so badly to grab hold of his pendant. To see what was inside. She understood why now; inside he had her dreams, their dreams, so close but just out of reach.

"I don't understand what you mean by the way back? I found my own way back, didn't I? I called for you."

Jareth smirked slightly at that. "You might have found your way back Underground, but you were not yet a part of it as you are now. Do you see how the Labyrinth moves and shapes itself around your desires? How the denizens of the Goblin Kingdom listen and work with you. Even the Sea King understood that you were no ordinary girl, and certainly not just a human. Otherwise he would have never backed off at Beltane the way he did. There is a power in you, Sarah, as old as the Labyrinth itself."

Sarah huffed, blowing a piece of hair from her eyes.

"I just learned to respect the Labyrinth and the Goblin Kingdom. It had nothing to do with being special – I took the time to learn."

"Sarah, you are the first Aboveground Labyrinth Champion in memory. Do you know why that is?"

"Is it because I had a lot of pluck and was undeterred by Goblin Kings and their obscenely tight pants?" Sarah answered sarcastically.

The Goblin King was not amused.

"No, Sarah, it's because you had The Right Words."

Sarah threw her hands up in frustration and marched over to stand atop the plate.

"Jareth, I read some lines in a book when I was fifteen without thinking anything of it. That's not special; that's careless."

"Oh is that so?" Jareth responded with mock curiosity, "Tell me then, Sarah, how many times have you read that book now? How many times did you mull over that first scene?"

Sarah rolled her eyes, "I don't know… more than I can count?"

Jareth strode over to where she was standing and placed his hands on his hips.

"But what no one knew is that the king of the goblins had fallen in love with the girl, and he had given her certain powers," Jareth said, looking pointedly at her.

"I already told you already it was just something I made up. To make the story more interesting!" Sarah replied, exasperated.

"Exactly." Jareth pushed a stray strand of hair gently behind her ear. "You changed the entire story with that one line. You changed your history and mine. But that's not where it stopped, is it?"

Sarah looked away from him, determined not to be swayed in any way by his intensity.

"I made a mistake, a terrible mistake, years ago."

"You see, Sarah, you're human. A simple, mortal, human girl," Jareth continued, ignoring her, "but what was that last line? The one you could never remember?"

Sarah's eyes went cold.

"No."

Jareth arched an eyebrow in surprise.

"No? But you seemed to have no problem saying them before. Trying to remember them, reciting them over and over in that park, but it was hard. Too hard for young Sarah Williams. But let's see if we can't remember together shall we?"

Jareth grabbed her by the arms and pulled her against him. Sarah struggled, pushing back against him to no avail.

"Through dangers untold," Jareth breathed into her ear. Sarah froze and stopped struggling.

"No, don't."

"And hardships unnumbered," he began to run his hands up the back of her shirt. She felt the heat through the gloves pressed against her skin.

"I have fought my way here to the castle beyond the Goblin City," he nipped at her ear with his teeth.

"To take back the child that you have stolen," she felt his tongue tracing its way around her neck.

"For my will is as strong as yours," he lifted her up by the waist, and she wrapped her legs around him.

"And my kingdom as great." He brought his mouth onto hers and kissed her again and again without stopping. But she could feel him smiling through the kisses. She put her hands on his chest and shoved him back, taking his momentary surprise to jump down from him.

She grabbed onto the chain of his pendant with one hand and pulled him back towards her. She yanked hard enough that he fell to his knees. Sarah smiled, holding tight to the pendant in one hand; she bent down to kiss him hungrily on the lips giving him no chance to catch his breath. When she heard the barest hint of a groan she pulled back slightly to whisper in his ear.

"You have no power over me."

She let the pendant go and she saw the Goblin King panting staring at her with a mix of craving and fury.

"You have understood nothing."

Sarah let out a shout of anger and shoved the Goblin King back into the dirt.

"No! I have had enough! Maybe I don't understand but only because you keep refusing to tell me!"

The Goblin King regained his footing so quickly that Sarah would have blinked and missed it.

"No," he growled. "You are just, as always, stubbornly not listening."

"I did this," she spat out. "I am the reason your Labyrinth has turned in on itself. I have ripped it from end to end. I am the eye of it."

Never in her life had Sarah seen Jareth's eyes so dark and so cold. She now understood how easy it would be for the Goblin King to make people fear him. He would simply have to look at them like that. As though there would never be any hope or mercy for them ever again. In that small second, Sarah was afraid. But she had been afraid before.

"I could say it wasn't completely my fault. I could say I was helped along, but I don't think that matters. No, I know that doesn't matter. Not anymore. Not after what I've seen. I knew what I was doing, I knew what I was risking and I did it anyways."

"What did you say, Sarah?" the Goblin King hissed under his breath.

"What? I don't-"

The Goblin King grabbed her by the wrists, putting his face inches from hers.

"What exactly did you say?"

Sarah swallowed thickly.

"I said… I said I wish I didn't have any of it. I didn't have to remember it at all. As though I never set foot in the Labyrinth."

Jareth shut his eyes and sighed deeply. He let go of her wrists.

"Yes," was all he said. He stepped away and went slowly back to sit down on the log.

Sarah had been expecting him to rage. To scream at her for destroying his kingdom, for taking what was never hers to take. She expected oubliettes and Aboveground. She did not expect a simple sad acceptance.

"I'm sorry."

Jareth nodded once.

"I know."

She walked over to sit next to him.

"But I do mean it. If I could take it back…"

He smiled at that.

"What's said is said."

She smiled slightly back.

"So I've been told."

"Well perhaps one day you'll listen."

That stung Sarah and she clenched her hands into fists to keep calm.

"So I suppose you'll be sending me back Aboveground now?" Sarah asked timidly.

Jareth looked at her out of the corner of his eye.

"No. I won't."

"You won't?" Sarah responded, surprised. "But I destroyed everything. I ravaged your kingdom."

"It's your kingdom too."

Sarah felt her chest tighten.

"Please, Jareth, no it's not."

Jareth shook his head, a smile on his lips.

"Sarah, you really don't understand."

Sarah sighed.

"Jareth, I'm not marrying you."

Jareth turned to look at her with a mixture of shock and amusement on his face.

"Marry me? Sarah only a moment ago you were shoving me in the dirt and telling me how you turned my entire kingdom upside down. You really think I'm asking you to marry me?"

Sarah felt her cheeks flush in embarrassment.

"Well I only thought –"

"You confess to savaging my land and I decide that this calls for a proposal. Quite the romantic am I."

"Oh shut it." Sarah whacked him on the shoulder.

Jareth's smile faded slightly.

"When I said it was your kingdom too, I was only restating what I've been telling you this whole time. The Aboveground is not your home. You belong here, in the Underground."

Jareth inclined his head towards the crack.

"All magic leaves traces. Little fragments of what once was left behind. Cracks in both worlds. This forest happens to be situated on the largest one in the Underground. The Labyrinth guards against whatever might come through. But what happens after? What happens to those who get caught in between the cracks?"

Sarah took Jareth's hand into her own.

"Like me?"

Jareth nodded.

"Yes, Sarah, like you."

Jareth let Sarah's hand fall and began to walk around the space.

"A long, long time ago, back before I was born, in a time humans could not even begin to dream about, there was one land. For this one land there was one King and one Queen. There were lords and ladies of course, but everyone bowed to the High King and Queen. The last High King and Queen were my grandparents, and their son, Gwrtheyrn, was in love with a human girl."

Sarah shook her head. "No, Hilly told me Avaina wasn't human."

Jareth crossed his arms and looked at her in annoyance.

"Oh sorry, my mistake. I forgot that my aged dwarf librarian is a better source of history regarding Avaina and Gwrtheyrn than their son."

Sarah rolled her eyes.

"I'm just telling you what she told me."

Jareth softened slightly and continued speaking.

"For the current understanding and generally accepted use of the term human, no you personally would not call her human. But nothing is what it seems in the Underground as you know. She had a small, contained amount of magic which related solely to these woods. That was her power. Somewhere along the line her bloodline had mingled with that of a magical creature, and this was the result. But she was still a human, and the High King and Queen couldn't have their only son loving one.

"Humans were a free species. They could live wherever and however they chose. But they were still a secondary species due to their lack of magic. When the Great War started nobody could have predicted how ruinous and devastating it would be. The fae had the advantage of magic, but there were millions more humans than fae. Gwrtheyrn was the son of the High King and leading general of the fae army. Every day he would ride through the battlefields slaying men, women, and children. He would win whatever the cost."

"But by the time the sun started its descent, he would be up here, visiting Avaina in her favourite spot. He asked for her hand half a hundred times, but she would not hear of it. Not until her race was safe. Avaina loved humanity, and unfortunately for her she also loved Gwrtheyrn. Every day he would come to her with new promises, new dreams and new wonders for her to behold if only she would agree to be his bride. Avaina kept her distance as long as she could until she realized that the war was ending and her race was doomed.

"Avaina learned that the intention was the genocide of the human race. The fae wanted to leave no survivors to reproduce and rebuild. Avaina made her last stand with Gwrtheyrn. If he did not put an end to the war and save humanity, she would poison herself, choosing rather to die with the rest of humanity than live as the last human and wife of the general who murdered them all. As much as Gwrtheyrn loved the fae, he loved Avaina more. So in order to keep Avaina safe, he split the world in two."

"But," Sarah interrupted, "he did the right thing. He saved an entire species from extinction and allowed each group to live freely. Granted, he did it for the wrong reasons, but the end result was good."

Jareth shook his head.

"Sarah, for all magic there is a cost. To rip the entire world apart Gwrtheyrn paid a terrible price. He paid it in blood. The spell required royal blood, the blood of both a king and a queen shed to split the earth."

"His parents," Sarah breathed in understanding. "He murdered his parents."

Jareth nodded once.

"Gwrtheyrn tricked his mother and father into coming to this spot and together he and Avaina slit their throats. Their blood ran down their necks and spread out to form the crack you see here."

"Your mother was a part of it? But in my dream she seemed so… different."

Jareth smirked slightly and cocked his head toward her.

"You think my father only loved her for her beauty?"

"She seemed gentle. Someone who only wanted the best for her people," Sarah explained.

Jareth arched a brow.

"She did. But the best for her people meant slaying the High King and Queen. She had no love for them. They were less than nothing to her, just tyrants who wanted her entire family dead. Would you do any differently?"

Sarah didn't even need to think about it. Jareth took her silence for an answer.

"Taking the iron blade and running it through the High King and Queen was just a small thing if it meant the safety of humanity and still being able to hold Gwrtheyrn as hers.

"But the consequences of this action ran much further and deeper than either Gwrtheyrn or Avaina could have predicted. When the rest of the Underground found out what had happened they denied Gwrtheyrn the throne as censure for regicide, patricide and marrying a human who assisted him in the murders. The Underground divided the kingdoms, and a ruler was appointed for a specific land. To honour what remained of the bloodline, my father was given the Goblin Kingdom and the Westerlands as his dominion.

"He and my mother built a Labyrinth around the castle to distance themselves from the rest of the world. Many fae tried to seek vengeance for the former High King and Queen. A hundred years after my birth one fae succeeded, he took my mother's life, decapitating her one night as she lay in bed. The fae paraded her head around the Underground on a stick while the rest of the fae cheered."

"That is horribly cruel," Sarah said, disgusted.

"No, actually that was kind. They could have taken my head as well if they had wanted. Out of respect for what remained of the royal bloodline they did not. Besides, they had already brought Gwrtheyrn's world to ruin with that one act, just as he had brought down theirs."

"That does not make it any less horrible," Sarah said, softer this time.

"I think what my father thought was more horrible was the idea of her memory reduced to a single act. Something with which she saved her people, who would never know to thank her. The world in which she lived called her tyrant and beheaded her for her crimes. There was more to her than the war, but neither the Above nor Underground would ever know that. So…my father erased her from the consciousness of the Underground."

It dawned on Sarah then, her connection to Gwrtheyrn and Avaina. He had performed the same spell she had.

"But wait, that's can't be." Sarah's brows knitted in confusion. "Hilly remembered who they were. She knew all about them and the Great Divide."

Jareth waved a hand dismissing her.

"He did not remove her completely. Just the details. For most inhabitants of the Underground, when they hear the name Avaina today, they remember her only as Gwrtheyrn's queen and my mother. They knew she was the reason behind the splitting of the two worlds, but no one will ever remember how the worlds were split."

"No, no wait. When I was researching the details of this spell there was a clause. It only works against those you have power over."

Jareth smirked.

"My father, as he was the only trueborn son of the High King, was still his heir despite everything else. Even hundreds of years after the kingdoms divided, he still had the blood, and therefore ruling rights to the Underground were traditionally his. He still had power over the Underground to destroy their memories and understanding of the war."

Jareth's smirked vanished, and his eyes grew hard.

"There were certain individuals who he could not manipulate. They are few, and almost all of them have sworn fealty to me and are members of my kingdom. They will never share this secret."

Jareth grasped her hand tightly.

"So you can understand now, I hope, why I would not tell you."

Sarah nodded and slowly removed her hand from his.

"I understand why you wouldn't tell me, but I still wish you would have.

"But one thing I'd like to know," Sarah continued, ignoring Jareth's glare, "is what happened to Gwrtheyrn after all this."

Jareth narrowed his eyes.

"I'm afraid I don't know. The magic he did to erase Avaina's actions, it was a very dangerous and complicated spell with a great many consequences as I'm sure you know. After the spell was done, Gwrtheyrn vanished. There is no record of him ever existing or his death after that moment. And that is something, Sarah, that I cannot explain to you."

Sarah almost felt sorry for the Goblin King in that moment. She never got on with her mother, but at least knowing she was dead was a kind of peace in itself. She didn't know how she would have taken it had her mother just disappeared. Burying her mother allowed her to move past her and her choices. It gave Sarah the closure she never realized she wanted. It seemed Jareth had to carve out his own closure. Throughout the story he was telling it as if it were just some old folktale, not the fate of his parents. But something was still bothering her about the story.

"So my relationship to your parents is that… Gwrtheyrn and I both cast the same spell?" Sarah asked.

Jareth's eyes flashed at her.

"No."

Jareth sat down next to her on the abandoned log.

"I would not have ever been born if, nearly 4,000 years ago, my parents had not slain my grandparents in this very spot. Neither would you."

Sarah nodded.

"Yes, because your species would have ensured the genocide of my species."

Jareth shook his head.

"It goes deeper than that Sarah. We are both children of the war, you see. The living casualties. We only live because of this bloodshed. While everyone else died so we get to live."

"Because I fell through the cracks," Sarah prompted him.

Jareth gently touched his palm to her cheek.

"You fell through the cracks because you are made from the crack. It took me much too long to spot it. I think perhaps because you are a second generation so your first time through it was less obvious than it should have been. But then after you were gone I knew…you were not of your world."

Sarah jerked her face away from his touch.

"I am really tired of hearing that, and I'm really tired of your dance Jareth. Say what you mean."

Jareth exhaled and looked at her assuredly.

"Sarah you are not human. You are a changeling."


	21. Chapter 21

Sarah immediately burst out laughing, startling Jareth.

"A changeling? Are you serious?"

"Perfectly," Jareth replied, confused.

This only served to make Sarah laugh even harder.

"I do not see what is so funny." Jareth placed his hands on his hips, annoyed.

Sarah tried to compose herself and wiped away a few tears from her eyes.

"It's just… a changeling. I'm a changeling. Alright then." She burst out laughing once again, and Jareth stared at her, annoyed, until she finished.

"Jareth, it's just so ridiculous. Ridiculous because it is not true."

Jareth's softened his scowl slightly.

"I assure you, Sarah, it is true."

Sarah shook her head, stood up and began to pace.

"No, because I know who my parents are. Robert and Linda Williams. I mean there are photos of my mother pregnant with me. I've seen them."

"Sarah, did you never wonder why you favor your mother so strongly?"

"No," Sarah said dismissively. "Some kids just look more like one parent than the other. Usually it's the parent of the same gender. It's not that uncommon."

"You favor your mother so strongly because fae genetics are stronger than human ones. Changelings are not what you think, Sarah. They are rarely abandoned fae babies. No, they are the children of fae and humans. Fae will come Aboveground to partake in the pleasures of your culture as we've done for thousands of years. One such pleasure is human beings themselves. This will, on occasion, result in a child. These children do not belong Aboveground, as the fae part of their genetics calls them everyday to return to their kin. They have unnatural abilities that other parents and children find strange and disconcerting. A couple centuries ago changeling children were drowned or called possessed."

"So the fae attempt to kill off humanity for good, and when humanity gets their own plane the fae come back to seduce us. Wow I am just becoming more and more glad to learn I'm a part of that species," Sarah said sarcastically.

"Sarah, you're not listening to what I'm saying." Jareth stood up and held her firmly by her shoulders. "Could you please refrain from your oh-so-witty commentary for a few moments so you're not harassing me later about not giving you all the facts?" Jareth said wearily.

"I'm not listening because what you're saying is crazy. I'm not a changeling; I'm not fae; I'm just Sarah Anne Williams. I'm… an editor. A junior editor." Sarah jabbed her finger at Jareth for good measure.

Jareth grabbed her by her extended hand. "You are Sarah Anne Williams, and your mother was Linda Williams. You are a creature of the Underground and a second generation changeling and so much more than  _just_  a junior editor."

"I don't… second generation what?" Sarah said, confused.

"This is what I'm trying to tell you." Jareth dropped her hand and motioned for her to sit. Sarah ignored him.

"Sarah, your parents are your parents. Your father is Robert Williams and he is completely human. So human in fact he's taken to dullness."

"Watch it," Sarah said sharply. Jareth continued as if he hadn't heard her.

"Your mother on the other hand is not. She is or was, a child of the Underground left Above to be raised by human parents."

"My mother?" Sarah asked softly

"Yes. Now here's where it gets complicated. I know she was born Underground, and I know that a large part of her is fae, but what I cannot know is whether she was the child of a fae and human encounter or if she was the bastard child of two fae. I'm afraid there's no way of knowing how human she was or if she was human at all."

"You're telling me that my mother was just left on my grandparents' doorstep with a note asking them to raise her?" Sarah said, disbelieving.

"No, your grandparents did have a daughter around the same age, and a trade was made. Likely without your grandparents' knowledge."

"And their child?" Sarah asked, unsure if she wanted the answer at all.

"Somewhere Underground, I expect. Still alive, I'm almost certain of it; they'd still be fairly young. Aging here does not work the way it does Aboveground," Jareth explained.

"But why didn't my mother ever tell me this?!" Sarah was angry now that there was yet another thing she'd never learned about her mother, proving more and more that Sarah had never really known her at all.

"I think it is possible she never knew. Many changelings don't. They were raised in a world where magic doesn't exist and therefore fundamentally they shouldn't exist. Even if they know deep down inside that they're not right, they rarely accept or understand who they truly are. You should know this is also why your mother was who she was," Jareth said to her gently.

"What? You mean irresponsible, distant, abandoning, cruel and selfish? But take that away from her, Goblin King, and what's left?" Sarah laughed a bit hysterically.

"A woman out of her world. It is a terrible thing to be separated from who you are. The magic that was inside her was tearing her to pieces. Pulling her in all directions, begging to escape. So she ran with it. Looking for a place where she didn't feel like she was drowning. She tried marriage and children, and that did not settle her; she ran towards the theatre, not uncommon for changelings as their heritage predetermines them to not only be incredibly beautiful but to have a certain skill in the creative arts where they can pretend to be more than they are. But this also didn't settle her, so she tried whatever she could get her hands on to quiet her mind and leave her in peace. Changelings almost always die young. Always in avoidable situations. Car accidents, murder, suicide, drownings – never a natural cause. It's a funny thing, if they weren't killed they'd live for years and years, much longer than any normal human would. You see, they're not immortal, but they cannot just die naturally. They can only be killed. There's no cancer or degenerative illnesses for them; their battle is fought internally and unfortunately it is an impossible one to win." Jareth finished and looked at Sarah, waiting for her reaction.

"The car accident that killed my mother. Was it that? An accident?" Sarah asked him sharply.

"I'm afraid I don't know. Only your mother will ever know that."

"Is that why people don't like me then? Because they can tell I'm not one of them? Why the plants die at my touch?"

Jareth nodded. "After nearly a century of war, once the world was split in two, the humans began to forget that we ever existed. We became nothing more than stories and songs. But the fear and anger remained; it ran so deep that humanity doesn't even realize it's there. They will always turn away from you, always scorn you, because to them you represent the greatest threat humanity has ever known, and they have made it very clear with their towers of iron and their vilification of magic that we do not belong in their world. Even the ground rejects us now as the bringers of death and destruction. It shudders and collapses at our very touch. So you understand now why I have told you Aboveground is not your home."

"But neither is the Underground!" Sarah said fiercely. "I feel like everything I've done here… nothing is mine. Everything is yours; everything was a gift; I've no claim to anything. I'll always be at your mercy if I stay here."

"Sarah, if you stay Aboveground you will die, and soon. When you journeyed here the first time, when you ate the peach and when you loved the creatures you made your choice. You know about magic; you know it's real and that it is inside of you. Like Avaina and the forest, your magic lies in your words."

"The Right Words," Sarah breathed, understanding.

Jareth nodded. "Yes. When you said the right words, when you made your escape, you made those words true. Your kingdom as great. Nobody else could have said those words. Especially not after partaking in the food of the Underground. You ripped a hole in the world and fled through the crack. That should never have happened. Then you could call your friends back to you through that hole whenever it pleased you."

"My mirror," Sarah said, "they came through my mirror."

"Mirrors are excellent places for cracks and holes between worlds. Everything you see through them is not quite right. Just a little bit off. Then you cast that spell, eviscerating yourself from the Underground and the minds of all those in it. A human girl could have said those words and felt no more than a breeze through her window, but you believed it so strongly and you wanted it so much that you made it true. But the spell was of course incomplete; you had no power over me so I could not forget you – not completely. Just as you could not forget me because as strong as your spell might have been, your heart was stronger.

"And imagine my surprise when the same girl, the girl who was supposed to be human, calls me again thirteen years later. Looking more beautiful than ever. And I realize who I've been searching for this whole time. Your words not only brought me back to you, but you back to me."

He looked at her intensely, and Sarah felt her breath catch slightly.

"So of course you became a junior editor," he continued and turned his gaze away from her, "you always knew the right words. You even made a mortal living off it. But you cannot go back there. You've been Underground for too long now; you'll die if you return Aboveground."

"You said their deaths were always avoidable. They died because they could not cope living in a world that wasn't their own. But I've lived Aboveground, and I've lived Underground. I know exactly what I would be missing. I could always come back anytime I wanted," Sarah argued

Jareth narrowed his eyes.

"Who says I would come for you?"

Sarah looked at him skeptically. "You wouldn't watch me die."

Jareth's expression grew hard.

"You make a great many assumptions, Sarah. The chief one being the belief I would ever allow you to return in the first place." He turned and walked away from her, leaving Sarah steaming.

"How dare you," Sarah said, furious, "You promised you'd return me Aboveground after thirteen weeks. You cannot keep me here."

"Wrong!" Jareth spun around. "I promised I'd take you home. This is your home now. This has always been your home. So consider my end of the bargain paid."

Sarah froze for a moment, realizing he was right. He had only ever promised to bring her home. Suddenly she screamed and lunged at the Goblin King.

"You cannot do this to me! You manipulative, twisted, horrible bastard!"

The Goblin King easily held her attack back and looked down on her as she raged.

"Wait, I have a power of my own. You said it," Sarah realized and stopped attempting to attack Jareth. "I have the Right Words. All I have to do is wish myself Aboveground!"

Sarah looked at Jareth triumphantly, but he merely smirked at her.

"Oh my Sarah, you should listen more carefully." He placed a hand on his pendant. "This is what allows me to travel between Above and Underground so seamlessly. It is the only thing that keeps me safe Aboveground and allows me to return home. You could say your Right Words until your throat ran dry, but until your heart truly believes its home is Aboveground and can accept that you will never return here, your words are meaningless. Even if you could manage it, without such an object, there would be no returning Underground.

"So, Sarah," he pushed a strand of fallen hair back behind her ear. "Tell me, what do you want? Your average life Aboveground, slowly leading you closer and closer to death, or a life of immortal wonder down in the Underground. You must make your choice."

Sarah stepped away from his touch. Her heart grew heavy as she realized what she must do. There was never any such thing as an easy choice. At least not where Jareth was concerned.

"Don't do this to me," she hissed at him.

Jareth sneered at her.

"I am doing nothing Sarah. You're the one who seems hell bent on breaking our agreement. I do not care for cowards."

Sarah went cold and turned her back to walk away from him. Jareth reached out to grab her arm and stop her, and for Sarah, that was the final straw. She spun around and slapped him full across the face. Jareth dropped her arm.

"I am no coward," she said with a great deal more courage then she felt.

Jareth closed the gap between them. She felt his breath on her neck she inclined her head slightly and met his eyes barely an inch away.

"Then why did you slap me?"

Sarah felt her cheeks redden slightly, and she tried to back away. The Goblin King, anticipating this, grabbed hold of her by the small of her back and pulled her close against him.

"You may have grown up, precious thing, but you continue to toy and play pretend. You want your world in black and white, the safe Above. But it is the dark places, the grey areas which bring out the best in you, Sarah. Why do you work so hard to keep with the fantasy, when we both know you belong here. Underground, in the much more forgiving grey."

Sarah felt as though she was back in the Escher room once again. The Goblin King desperately trying to hold onto her by any means necessary. But unlike last time there was a real choice to be made. Where before she'd been so certain of her decision, she could not say the words with any confidence now. More than that, they both had far too much power over the other to ever hope to claim otherwise. The Goblin King had succeeded, but Sarah would never tell him as much. Because where he had succeeded, she did not feel like she lost. No, Sarah knew exactly what it was she wanted now, even if it would be her last chance.

"Your kindness, your cruelty, your forgiveness – it doesn't matter to me, Goblin King. You think this is still a game to be won, but you're wrong. My mind is made up; I know what I want."

"Then prove it Sarah," he bit at the side of her neck. "Tell me what you want."

Sarah pushed him back slightly and stared at him for half a second. She raised her hand up to his face and saw that he thought she would slap him again. The idea certainly did have its merits, but instead she grabbed him roughly by his hair and pulled his mouth down onto hers.

"Everything," she said in between her kisses. "I want everything, everything, everything."

And it's only a split second but she feels it, she's caught him off guard. This thought makes her heart beat faster and her hands more desperate as she pulls him harder against her.

"Everything, everything, everything," she moaned as she left bites and kisses down his neck trailing towards his chest "till kingdom come."

"Sarah…" he moaned back, and there it was again, the threat and the promise.

Suddenly he gripped her tightly and pulled her atop him. She wrapped her legs around his waist, and her hand clutched at his hair. She began to attempt to pull his shirt off of him, but he beat her to it and instead ripped her shirt and wrenched it down her shoulders.

He pushed her against the trunk of a tree, and Sarah could feel that his desire was as strong as hers. His hands snaked their way along her bare back, and she realized that his gloves were gone. He bent his head down and buried his face in her chest, teasing her breasts by laying kisses everywhere around them. Sarah let out a small moan and felt his lips quirk into a smile as he quickly ripped the remainder of her shirt off her, and she takes the opportunity to do away with her bra.

Jareth began to lick slowly at her breast while his hands made sure the other one was not forgotten. Sarah's legs wrapped tighter around his waist as she arched into his mouth. His touches and kisses were painful in their slow deliberation. His teeth scraped along her breast as he bit down against the skin. Sarah let out a small gasp at the sensation, and her head fell back against the tree. This absolutely wouldn't do, and Sarah began to tug at Jareth's shirt, once more urging him out of it. The pendant swung against his bare chest, and Sarah felt the coldness of the metal against her skin.

His hands ran slowly up her legs, playing along her skin like it was a piano. Sarah felt restless beneath him, wishing desperately that she had not chosen to wear leggings so that she could feel his hands on her. Jareth's hands leisurely stroked her legs, touching them at all angles until finally coming to rest at her center. Jareth stopped and stroked her once languidly with the tips of his fingers.

"Jareth," she gasped out his name, and he suddenly stopped. She looked at him, flushed and panting, eyes dark with desire and she was pleased to see he appeared much the same. There was a wildness in his eyes that excited her. He looked like a wolf, starving up till now, ready to devour his prey.

Sarah laughed softly as she leaned back against the tree and slowly began to step out of her boots and pants, never taking her eyes off the Goblin King for a second. Sarah smiled at the wanting in his face. She ran one hand deliberately through her dark curls and watched as the last of the Goblin King's reserve crumbled

He suddenly was doing away with the remainder of his clothing as well and grinned hungrily back at her as he pushed her back against the tree. Sarah felt her body collide with his, each of them desperate and wanting. Sarah knew just how long he had been wanting this and wondered if he knew how long she'd wanted as well.

Sarah felt the Goblin King begin to move down her body, slowly leaving a pattern of kisses and tender nips at the skin as he went. She felt him at her neck, trailing along her collarbone and then down to her breasts where he lingered. His hands matched his mouth, lightly tracing around her curves with the tips of his fingers. He was at her stomach, kissing the skin just around her navel.

Sarah closed her eyes and felt him part her legs before laying a tender kiss upon her center. Suddenly his hands tightened around her thighs, and the Goblin King began to consume her. Sarah dug her fingers into his back and moaned. She could feel her desire building faster and further than she'd ever thought possible. Any doubts she'd ever had about surviving this were gone. There would be no coming out of this alive.

Sarah grabbed him by his shoulders and pulled him up to face her. She began to kiss him with wild abandon, reaching down to slowly and deliberately stroke him. She felt Jareth shudder slightly and she smiled, pleased. She moved her hand more urgently, and he moaned low in his throat.

"Sarah, mine."

Sarah froze and felt what little remained of her self-control shatter. Jareth slowly brushed the hair out of her eyes to look at her. She lifted her leg to wrap around his hips as he entered her.

They didn't kiss. Panting hard, thrusting back and forth in time with the one another. She wouldn't take her eyes off him, and he held her gaze, both losing themselves completely in the other and neither wanting to give in first. Their tempo increased as their desperation drove their pleasure into a crescendo. Sarah knew she wouldn't last much longer as her entire body shuddered and an involuntary moan escaped her lips. It was Jareth's smirk that did her in, and Sarah grabbed Jareth sharply to her as she came undone. The bark from the tree scratched at her back, and her head fell backwards as she dimly felt Jareth follow her into oblivion.

They slid down to the grass below, both shuddering and gasping for air, completely wrapped up in one another.

It was a few minutes before Sarah was able to regain some of her composure. She pulled away from Jareth, slightly pinning him to the ground as she climbed on top of him. Her dark hair fell in curtains around her face, and he reached his hand up to stroke the bottom of her lip with his thumb.

Sarah trailed her hands down his chest, coming to rest atop his pendant and feeling the energy stirring just beneath the surface. She leaned down and kissed him softly on the lips.

"I'm sorry."

Sarah felt her chest tense up. She couldn't have everything. But there was always another way, if you knew where to look.

Jareth's previous expression of satisfied contentment left his face as the barest flash of worry flitted across his eyes.

"You're sorry?"

Sarah nodded.

"Yes. So very sorry."

Sarah straightened her back and, gently running her fingers up his chest, took hold of the leather cord that bound Jareth's pendant and ripped it from his neck.

Quickly she ran to stand in the centre of the clearing, knowing she only had a moment before the Goblin King would realize what she was doing. But when she turned to look at him she saw him simply sitting there, making no move to stop her.

Sarah's confidence wavered, but she grasped the pendant tighter in her palm and spoke loudly and clearly.

"I wish to go back to my house Aboveground right now!"

And the crack opened up to swallow her whole.


	22. Chapter 22

_Even if love was underneath it all, there was a great deal piled on top, and what would you find when you dug down? Not a simple gift, pure gold and shining; instead, some thing ancient and possibly baneful, like an iron charm rusting among old bones. A talisman of sorts , this love, but a heavy one; a heavy thing for me to carry around with me, slung on its iron chain around my neck. - Margaret Atwood, 'The Blind Assassin'_

* * *

The ground hit her suddenly and an unprepared Sarah tumbled down to the soft carpet. This was all well and good because she was quite certain she couldn't have stood if she wanted to. The air was much too thin, and she was finding it difficult to breathe.

She clutched at her chest and found herself in the same nightdress she'd left Aboveground in. Sarah looked and realized that the tear where she'd tumbled downward onto the Goblin King's bed was gone.

The carpet was still damp where water from the vase had spilt. The flowers were still sitting upon her bureau save for a blackened one left on her overturned comforter. Sarah could hear the sound of rain against the window, the same rain as when she'd left. It was still her birthday.

In fact the only thing that showed any sign of change was the heavy, ancient looking pendant draped around her neck. It was warm against her skin. Sarah could feel the faintest of pulses there.

If she looked, she knew she would see the scratches and bites he'd left upon her skin. Part of her hoped they scarred.

Sarah laid her head down on the damp carpet. She didn't have the energy to stand and walk to her bed. A small fleck of glitter in the carpet caught her eye. She flicked the particle onto her hand and watched it shine in the light.

She could have everything, but it would cost her just the same.

Sarah begged her mind for sleep, but it would give her no such reprieve. Her cheek against the carpet, she waited all night.

 

* * *

 

"You know what I hate?" Sarah slurred. "Owls. Owls are stupid and smug, and everyone thinks they know about owls, but they don't. No, no, no, I know about owls. Owls are bastards. Are you listening, Sam?"

"Oh I heard you. Owls, bastards. Got it." Her co-worker struggled to help her remove her shoes, made much more difficult because she kept kicking him.

"Fuck owls. Seriously, Sam. Fuck them." Sarah tugged his messy dark blonde hair up. "Sam, they're just shoes. Sometimes they are also asshats. Don't worry about them. Worry about other things. Like those fucking owls."

Sam rolled his eyes and offered a hand to Sarah.

"Can you walk upstairs by yourself, or do you need to be carried?"

Sarah scowled at him, lunged for his hand, and dramatically pulled herself up.

"In my supreme power of handling things, I can handle this."

A statement that would have carried a greater weight had she not proceeded to nearly topple over when he let go of her hand. Quickly he caught her and threw her arm around his shoulder, putting his hand around her waist.

"You know, Sarah, we invited you out for a few drinks, not  _all_  of the drinks."

"All seemed like a better option. There was more alcohol there," Sarah said morosely.

"Sarah, what is going on with you lately? I mean, I know we're not really friends, but you kind of seem to be spiralling a bit. Is everything okay?" Sam asked her with concern in his voice.

"Well Sam, lemme tell you. I got some problems, 99 of them in fact, and smug, two-faced, manipulative owls are all of them."

"Right, glad we cleared that up," Sam said wearily.

They reached the top of the stairs and her bedroom, and Sam tried to help her down onto her bed. Sarah decided to take the opportunity to dramatically flop onto the mattress, taking Sam down with her.

"Sam, why did you help me?" Sarah asked him from facedown on her bedspread.

"Because you seemed like you needed it."

Sarah turned over to look at the man lying next to her. With his shaggy blonde hair and light freckles covering his nose. A good man.

"Would you kiss me if I asked you to?"

Sam looked at her for a moment and then shook his head.

"There was a time I'd have given anything for you to ask me that."

"There was?" Sarah asked, genuinely confused.

"Yes, I mean, you're the smartest woman in the building by far, and you have this energy about you that's just…I saw you every day, and you never saw anything at all. It was like you were in your own, world and there was no place for me in it. Sarah, and lately, with the way you've been, I don't know. I feel like we've lost you to that world forever."

He could have loved her, Sarah thought. A good man that could have loved her and given her the life she'd always supposed she should have, and it was on her, herself and no one else that she didn't have it.

"Please don't say that." Sarah reached for his hand, and tenderly he placed a kiss upon her palm.

"I'll be fine. I just hope you will be to. Find your way back home, Sarah."

"I don't need a way back. I know exactly where I am thanks," she replied bitterly.

The bed creaked as Sam stood up to leave.

"You sure you're going to be okay tonight, Sarah?"

"Yep," she replied not turning to look at him, "I'll be A-Okay."

"Alright well, goodnight then."

Sam turned off the lights, and she listened until she heard him close the front door behind him.

"I don't need a way back," she muttered to herself.

As she drifted off to a hazy sleep she could have sworn she saw a familiar figure standing in her mirror.

 

* * *

 

The kingdom was falling apart around her. The walls were crumbling to the ground, and the lichen had grown in every crack and cranny. The light was shining through the new skylight where the ceiling had once been. This was no castle; this was just a shell of what might have been. The place bore little resemblance to the throne room she'd once known, and had it not been for the pale king standing by what remained of a window, she doubted she would have recognized it at all.

She walked up to him and gently placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Your castle is in ruin."

He glanced at her from out of the corner of his eye.

"This is not my castle."

Sarah looked around; she saw the familiar barbaric throne, the semi-circle pit in the centre of the room, and of course, the large, thirteen hour clock that was almost a piece of the castle itself.

"It looks like your castle to me."

"No, it is not my castle yet."

As Sarah moved to stand next to him at the window she saw what he meant. Where the labyrinth should have been was just a dry and desolate wasteland. There was a large forest to the east and a body of water that she assumed must be the Sea of Dreams that seemed to go on forever to the west. Straight ahead lay nothing as far as Sarah could see.

"There's no Labyrinth."

"It hasn't been built yet," Jareth answered her, "but it will be soon."

Just as Jareth spoke, two figures strode into the room. Sarah recognized them immediately. Avaina with her long red hair looked very much the queen with a small silver circlet upon her head. She wore a white dress that wrapped around her frame as though she had been born wearing it. It pooled at her feet and stretched out into a small train where, if Sarah looked, she could see the design of trees and brambles crawling around the hem. The light, gauzy sleeves twisted around her arms very much like the vines that they were patterned with. Around her neck she wore a large, heavy pendant, the same one that was currently around Sarah's. Gwrtheyrn was dressed entirely in black, but this time he wore no armour. The shirt was made out of a light material, catching in the wind as he walked to reveal the bare skin around his collar.

"There remains much work in the months ahead of us, wife."

Avaina smiled at her husband beatifically.

"You must let me have this moment. I've waited so long for it now."

Gwrtheyrn smiled back at her and quickly lifted her up into his arms. Avaina laughed and relaxed into his frame.

"King and queen, as we were always meant to be, my love."

"But only of the goblins," Gwrtheyrn reminded her.

"Perhaps for now. But the goblins will prove more than enough for the pair of us, I think. Besides, we also have the crack to look after."

Gwrtheyrn's face hardened.

"They will always come through. Such separations always leave longings. What are we to do with them, my queen?"

Avaina dropped down from Gwrtheyrn's arms.

"I think I might have your answer." She removed the pendant from around her neck and carefully placed it around Gwrtheyrn's.

"It is blood bonded, yours and mine. It can only ever belong to the Goblin Kingdom and its rulers now. It was sealed with the dreams of humans and creatures of the Underground. Through their dreams you'll be able to pass through realms unharmed. It marks you as the Goblin King. It marks you as the King of Dreams."

Gwrtheyrn placed a gloved hand on the pendant. It glowed softly under his touch.

"Are you suggesting I return them to Aboveground?"

Avaina shook her head.

"No. I am suggesting that you must be their king and make sure they are well kept in your kingdom."

Avaina looked straight at Sarah, causing her to jump. Avaina walked closer, and Sarah could see she was only looking through the window. Jareth made no notice of seeing either of his parents.

"They will come for us soon."

Gwrtheyrn stood beside her and tightly grasped Avaina's shoulder.

"I shall not let them. They will never reach our castle. Not while I am king."

Avaina turned towards him and placed a hand upon his cheek.

"My Goblin King."

Gwrtheyrn pulled her in and embraced her passionately.

"My Goblin Queen."

Sarah turned to glance at Jareth but found him gone. Opening her eyes she was home, alone in her bed.

Two days later Sarah submitted her resignation at work.

 

* * *

 

"I just feel like you're a little put out seeing me?"

"It's not that, Sarah, I'm just surprised is all. You almost never come around anymore, and if you do it's usually just to pick up Toby, who's not even here right now."

Sarah sipped her tea, slowly surveying her father over the rim of the cup. He was right; she knew he was right. She didn't like visiting the house much because it had this weird sort of nostalgia attached to it. It made her uncomfortable and reminded her too much of things and people of whom she didn't particularly want reminding.

"Okay you're right, and I'm sorry. I should visit more, but I was busy at work. Won't have that problem anymore though!" she said brightly.

"Yes, tell me why you decided to quit your job without any prospects in sight? How are you planning to support yourself?" her father asked with concern.

Sarah smiled in spite of herself. It didn't seem to matter how old you got, your parents would always be there to lecture you.

"I've got some money put away; don't worry. I just felt it was time for a change is all. I'm thinking about moving, too."

"Moving? Moving where?"

Sarah shrugged.

"I don't know, somewhere in Europe maybe? I've always wanted to travel; I'm going to see if I can get a job overseas. Or maybe I'll finally write that book like I've been saying I'm going to for years."

"Sarah, I just don't know what's gotten into you. This isn't like you."

"I'm chasing my dreams, Dad. I've got the whole world in front of me to explore and to make mine."

Robert Williams stared at his daughter for a moment and then sighed deeply, running his hand through his greyed hair.

"Okay, I trust you, Sarah."

Sarah smiled at him warmly.

"Thank you. I'm glad I have you behind me."

"But, Sarah, really, why are you wearing that necklace? It's barbaric and rather gruesome-looking."

Sarah's hand quickly flitted to the pendant, which she'd forgotten to tuck into her shirt this morning.

"You don't like it?" she asked, pretending to be hurt.

"No, I don't. For some reason it's very unnerving to look at. Where did you get it?"

Sarah ran her hand along the front of the pendant. The dreams were still keeping it warm.

"It was a gift."

Sarah's father stared at it for a moment longer.

"You know, your mother had a very similar-looking necklace."

Sarah felt the bottom of her stomach drop.

"What?"

"Yes, she wore it sometimes. You used to love it when you were a baby, always grabbing at the long chain. I think she stopped wearing it around that time because she didn't want you to break it."

Sarah's hand wrapped tighter around the pendant.

"Do you still have it?"

"Yes." Her father thought for a moment. "If it's here it'll be in the box of her things in the attic. It was lost for years; I only found it again after she left. I meant to mail it to her, but I don't think I ever got around to it."

"Show me."

"Ah here it is." Sarah's father pushed back dusty books inside a box to reveal an old jewellery box. "It should just be in here."

Carefully he opened the lid and pulled out a long silver necklace. He was right, Sarah saw; the pendant was the same in design. Only her mother's was much smaller and daintier. There was also no centre and instead of looking ancient and raw like Jareth's pendant, her mother's looked shiny and delicate.

Sarah's father handed her the necklace.

"It's yours of course. I've always said these boxes are here for you to pick up."

"Where did she get this?" Sarah asked softly.

Sarah's father thought for a moment, thinking.

"I believe she said it was a gift?"

Sarah closed her eyes and sighed.

"For her eighteenth birthday?"

"Yes, I think so."

"Did she say who the gift was from?"

"No, I never asked."

Sarah slipped the necklace over her head. It fell just slightly above the other pendant.

"Okay."

Sarah stood up and dusted her knees off.

"I have to go, Dad. There's someone I need to speak to."

Sarah's father quickly stood up and narrowly avoided banging his head on the rafters.

"Sarah, what's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong, Dad. This is just a conversation that's long overdue is all."

"Is there anything I can do? Do you want me to come with you?"

"No. No, you stay here, and give my love to Toby and Karen would you?"

"I will. You're alright though?"

Sarah began to climb down the attic ladder.

"I'm fine. I promise."

 

* * *

 

Everything was dry and cracking. The thick humid air filled her lungs and her boots kicked up dust wherever she walked. Each step was hard, like she was fighting against an invisible barrier just to keep moving. Her palms sweated inside her gloves, and she could feel the heat of the pendant keenly against her chest.

"I should have known it'd be you."

Sarah spun around quickly and found the Goblin King scant inches from her face. He seemed to be completely unaffected by the heat. His bare hands gently pulled the pendant out from underneath her shirt.

"It seems we will continue this dance until one of us dies of it."

"I didn't want this," Sarah heard herself saying, "I just wanted to go home."

She tried to pull the pendant off her neck, but it wouldn't budge.

"We all have things we want."

Slowly, he began to strip her bare. Taking the buttons on her shirt one by one in his hands.

"I wanted you, too," she said, allowing him to slide her shirt off her shoulders.

"And so you took me." He knelt and let his hands run languidly over her hips. Taking in the shape of her.

"I wanted you." Sarah watched as he tugged at her leggings. Slowly helping her step out of them. His hands never leaving her body for a moment. "I don't think I ever wanted someone the way you made me want you."

"You really think this was my doing?" He began to run kisses along the inside of her thighs.

"You ruined me, so that there could never be any other."

She was standing before him naked, save for her gloves and the pendant.

"Just as you ruined me." He had reached the center of her, and Sarah's hands tightened into fists as he ran his tongue over it. "I think, my love, that is who we are."

"Ruiners?" she asked breathlessly.

"No," he said patiently. "We destroy. You weren't content with just the kingdom, you had to destroy the king, too."

Sarah leaned back against the stone wall allowing her head fall back. She draped her leg over his shoulder moaning as his fingers began to work their way into her in competition with his tongue.

"Did I succeed?"

"Did I?" he asked, turning the question back on her.

Sarah smirked.

"I think I was destroyed long before you."

"Then just as a broken heart cannot love…"

He stood up and was eye-to-eye with her.

"Power is such a funny thing isn't it?" she asked him.

Jareth smiled.

"Take off your gloves, Sarah or lay a kiss upon my lips. This is not your dream."

Sarah slowly pulled one of her gloves off and reached out to touch his face.

"Then whose is it?"

Jareth's smile widened.

"Mine."

As her hand made contact with his face Sarah jolted awake.

 

* * *

 

It was a lot colder out than she was expecting, and Sarah hadn't thought to bring a jacket. She wrapped her arms tightly around herself for warmth.

"I don't…okay so I probably should have come here sooner. I didn't owe it to you, before you get that idea, but I still probably should have come here sooner. For me, for both of us, I don't know. This isn't easy for me, you know. This whole Right Words thing is kind of meaningless when it doesn't seem to work when it matters.

"So um, a truth, one truth that I can give you is that I've been lying about my closure. I've actually been lying about a lot of things, about you and your marks for twenty-eight years now. You are not who I thought you were. You're not the idol I held you up to be, nor are you the villain in my life story. You fall somewhere in between. Which makes a little too much sense given…well everything. Us ones in between, huh?"

Sarah sat down and leaned her back up against the hard stone.

"You were mine. You were supposed to be mine. You were supposed – I was supposed to be a part of you, an extension of you. Instead I was just someone you left behind. Unfortunately I can't seem to do the same for you. I would know, I tried.

"You failed me; you failed me terribly in ways I'll probably be discovering years from now still. But you're not all that I am. I am so much more than what you left behind. But I'm not going to pretend that it's not still sometimes hard, to have to carry you with me, but that's the price of love.

"And sometimes, I'll lie awake at night and whisper to you. Stories of mine that you always loved. I'll ask your advice. I'll believe that you're guiding me. I imagine you watching down on me. But that's not you. That's the you I imagined and created for myself. Because it was easier, because it made me feel better about still loving you, because for some reasons which sounded better inside my head than they do out loud.

"So I'm sorry. I'm sorry I never visited you. I'm sorry I never cried. I'm sorry I never knew you; I just knew 'Mom.' But mostly, I'm sorry that you'll never know yourself, and I'm sorry that I got a chance where you didn't. That's not fair. But that's the way it is, I'm afraid. I can't change that.

Sarah paused and took a deep breath.

"I do wonder though, how much you knew. I know you didn't get the choice; you would have left; I don't doubt that for a second. The funny thing is, though, if at fifteen I'd stayed, the first person I would have sent for is you. Then you might still be alive.

"But I suppose that's something else I'll never know. No more than I knew your life, I won't know about your death and the choices or non-choices you made there. I know that choosing a life, and choosing a world and to live, it's not an easy decision. People always get hurt along the way, and I guess for you in your story, I was your narrative casualty. I'm sorry you did that to me, and I'm sorry I turned around and did the very same thing to people I care about. I'm sorry about a lot of things these days."

Sarah let her head fall back to thud against the marker. She thought for a moment before pulling the necklace over her head and dropping it atop the grave. She stood up and turned to give the grave one last look. Something in the polished stone flitted across her eye, but in a blink it was gone. On the way out Sarah dropped the flowers she had brought into a bin. They were already dead in her hands.

 

* * *

 

Sarah slammed the door of her house and charged up the stairs to her bedroom. She flung her purse away and grabbed her mirror by the sides.

"Wiseman, Wiseman wherever you may be, get your leathery ass over here and answer me."

Almost at once the hatless Wiseman appeared in the frame of her mirror.

"You know, such words presume that there is a question you need answering, not simply a pleasant conversation like I am sure we are about to have."

"Why have you been watching me?"

"Watching you?" the Wiseman said innocently, "I'm afraid I don't know what you mean."

"I've seen you. Just out of the corner of my eye but I know it's you. You're there; you're always there."

"If it helps, it has been an interesting show so far. Watching you crash and burn your life to the ground. Compelling stuff, I will say."

If Sarah thought smashing the mirror at that point would have brought the Wiseman any pain she would have done it.

"Why are you watching me?"

The Wiseman shrugged.

"I just thought I'd check and see how well you're doing in the 'real world,' as you call it. Not well from what I've witnessed."

"I never called it the real world," Sarah muttered.

"Is that so? Well you seem to have no problem ripping open just about anything you could get your hands on to get back here. Must mean something to you."

"Of course it does; it's my home," Sarah said defensively.

"But not the Underground?" the Wiseman questioned.

"No! The Underground is not my home."

"I think you might find some room for interpretation there, my dear."

"Oh what? Because you say it is? Because…he says it is? That doesn't make it my home!"

Sarah flopped down onto her bed.

"I have a life here; I built a life here. So I don't care about some mangled genetics built on kidnapping. Which brings me back to why I called you here."

"You could have had a life there too, you know. A better life," the Wiseman offered, completely ignoring Sarah.

"No, you know what, I tried that. But I realized something. I couldn't have a life there. I would always be the princess at the centre of the Labyrinth. Stuck in some crystal dream where everything was created to make me happy. To beguile and keep me right where he wants me. Nothing was real, and nothing was mine."

"He was," the Wiseman said simply.

Sarah stopped.

"He doesn't love me. He only thinks he loves me," she said quietly.

"He is trying to love you," the Wiseman offered gently.

"Is that supposed to be enough?"

"Jareth doesn't try for anyone."

Sarah paused, considering.

"You know there are other men who don't even need to try."

The Wiseman arched a brow.

"True that may be, I don't believe you would be satisfied with any of them. Not anymore."

Sarah shot the Wiseman an icy glare.

"You presume too much."

"Do I now? I know you want him, Sarah. I've heard you say so yourself." The Wiseman smiled at her.

Sarah recoiled.

"You've been in my dreams."

The Wiseman shook his head.

"Not your dreams, precious, his dreams. Those I believe are fair game."

"Says who?" Sarah said angrily.

"Call it a lingering benefit. Being the former king of dreams does have its perks now and then. You left him wide open to prying when you plucked that pendant from his chest. That was well done, I must say. Certainly you didn't get your cleverness from your human side."

"You're disgusting," Sarah said flatly.

The Wiseman smirked.

"Believe me, young woman. There are far worse things than a bit of dream diving every now and then. After all, it is not as though you're completely innocent of this crime, are you now?"

Sarah thought for a moment.

"Why did you call yourself the former king of dreams? I thought that was the Goblin King's title," Sarah asked.

"So it is. One of many. If there was still a High King, Jareth would be the heir."

"No…" Sarah said, slowly realizing. "He would be High King. Because Gwrtheyrn is dead."

"Is he now?" the Wiseman said, surprised. "You'd think someone would have bothered to tell me."

"You call the Goblin King by his first name." Sarah stood up and started pacing in front of the mirror. "You claim he's not your king; you appear to be able to obtain items from around the Goblin Kingdom, royal items no less without any particular effort; you always know more than anyone else in the kingdom, and you can capture and hold memories and dreams."

"That's it. You've almost got it now," the Wiseman encouraged.

"Nobody saw Gwrtheyrn after the spell he did on Avaina's memory…" Sarah trailed off.

"That is correct," the Wiseman affirmed. "Nobody saw Gwrtheyrn again."

"But the Wiseman," Sarah spun to look at him.

"Is an entirely new story altogether." The Wiseman clapped his hands together with joy.

"You're Gwrtheyrn!" Sarah proclaimed with shock.

"I must say, it took you far longer than I expected for you to realize it. You might be clever, Sarah, but you can be awfully dense when it comes to what's right in front of your eyes," the Wiseman said gleefully.

"I'm sorry, but what the hell.  _What the hell_. Do you have any idea…he doesn't even know you're alive! Also your kingdom! Does anyone know? How long have you been like you!" Sarah gestured at the Wiseman before falling backwards onto her bed. "I mean seriously – what the hell?!"

"I'm afraid I didn't have many choices in the matter."

Sarah shot up from the bed.

"You didn't have many choices? That's what you're going with here?"

"You know by now that there is a cost to all things, but most especially magic. The Wiseman was mine."

"Why haven't you told Jareth?" Sarah accused the Wiseman.

"Because I cannot," the Wiseman answered sadly. "I have tried for more than a thousand years, but he becomes deaf to the words. To him I am nobody, and nobody I shall remain."

Sarah sighed heavily. Her conversation was going far from where she'd planned.

"So he can't ever know?"

"No."

"Then why tell me?" Sarah asked.

"The funny thing about the spell is, it only seems to apply to those I had power over. So while I have the backing of my blood to prevent the Underground from ever knowing the truth about me, you are not of the Underground nor are you human so the rules do not seem to apply to you." The Wiseman shrugged. "So I suppose, simply, because I could."

Sarah pursed her lips and shrugged.

"Well, did you tell my mother?"

The Wiseman smirked.

"Glad to see you've discovered that piece of the puzzle as well."

"You were the only one who could have given her that pendant and I've heard you talking about her before with Jareth. How did you know her and why did you give her the necklace?" Sarah asked.

"I gave her much more than the necklace. A few stuffed toys, a music box, a figurine and of course a certain red, leather-bound book. You'll recall it fondly, I'm sure."

Sarah's breath caught in her throat.

"Why did you give her those things?"

The Wiseman narrowed his eyes at her.

"Sarah, they were always going to be yours. I told her explicitly that they were to be given to her daughter."

Sarah felt sick to her stomach.

"You spoke with her?"

"Many times," the Wiseman said waving his hand dismissively. "I gave your mother her dreams, she wanted to know there was something more out there and I was proof. But then I had no further use for her and that seemed to set her a bit on edge. You cannot fault me for that. After all, what good was the mother when I had the daughter."

Sarah's fists clenched at her sides. It was the Wiseman who had set her mother off. The absence of her last tie to the Underground, he just vanished without a second thought for her. So her mother collapsed. But there was something more that was bothering her about the Wiseman.

"It was all you? In the end you're the reason I wound up Underground in the first place?" Sarah accused.

"No." The Wiseman inclined his head slightly. "As I've said before if you'll remember, you were always coming. I just made sure you had a map."

"A map?" Sarah sputtered.

"You were supposed to have been wearing the necklace when you made your first journey through the Labyrinth. It would mark you as important in the Goblin Kingdom and under protection. But the necklace fell through the cracks of your mother's silly human life and never made it to you. I wasn't too concerned once I realized you were more than capable of handling yourself. Though I wished you'd waited a few years before making your grand debut. You were much too young then. You've always been rather headstrong and stubborn so I suppose I should have expected it, but you handled yourself better than I could have ever expected. I was right in marking you."

Sarah's face crumpled into her hands.

"You set me up. My entire life you set me up to be what? A wife for Jareth? A pawn in some twisted arranged marriage?"

The Wiseman smiled.

"Oh no, not at all. Everything that happened between you and Jareth was of your own doing. I suppose I should have realized, he inherited his love for impossible women from his father," the Wiseman finished with a chuckle.

"Then why do this to me? Why bring me up to send me Underground?" Sarah shouted at the Wiseman.

"The Goblin Kingdom is not meant to be held by one ruler; it falls out of balance. Jareth is too stubborn to realize that. You were not the only girl I picked you know. I chose nearly a hundred different half-bloods from around the world over the last three centuries. Some of them never reached the Underground; others were far too weak but you, Sarah, you were strong. You were younger than so many of them when you made your first journey. When you defeated the Labyrinth and said the words, 'my will as strong as yours and my kingdom as great,' you marked yourself, and in turn the Labyrinth marked you. Only someone who has conquered a kingdom can rule it. You had the power of the Right Words but more than that, you knew how to use them for further power. I realized when you were eighteen you were about to wish yourself back, and you were still too young to rule a kingdom. I couldn't have that so I delayed you for a little while, until you were ready. That red book you found on your birthday had been there for more than seven years. When you finally allowed yourself to see it, you would make your return."

"Well you're wrong. I clearly was not the right person. At eighteen I destroyed the kingdom with my spell; there were lots to choose from to keep me Aboveground but I chose the one that would wreak the most havoc. Then just a few weeks ago, when given the option to stay permanently I snatched the symbol of the Goblin Kingdom straight from the king's neck and hopped straight back Aboveground. I'm not ruling anything, and I'm pretty sure Jareth would have my head if I told him he had to fork over fifty percent of his kingdom's power to me."

"Did you never wonder how you were able to steal the pendant? Never mind, it is something of a tradition for goblin queens to bring down the kingdom before they can raise it up again," the Wiseman joked.

"You can find yourself another woman, Wiseman. I am not it," Sarah said, annoyed. "Besides even if I did agree to rule the Labyrinth, how do you know I wouldn't call you out for who you really are? I would have power over them, too. Wouldn't that counteract your little spell?"

"Once you go back and you take your place in the Underground permanently, you'll forget who I am. But that's the way it's got to be."

"I am not going back," Sarah said flatly. "This is my home and nowhere else."

"The thing about being both the Wiseman and the once king of dreams is that I'm rarely wrong about these things. You have forgotten that I've been keeping an eye on you. You're severing ties with your life here one by one. Settling unfinished business and making your peace. Whether you realize it or not you're preparing for your return Underground, and this time, you won't be coming back."

"No I'm not. I'm just trying for a change," Sarah refuted. "Besides, it's not like I could even go back Underground at this point."

"But isn't that why you took the pendant, Sarah? So you'd always have a way back?" the Wiseman prodded.

Sarah touched the pendant absently.

"Having something and using it are two different things. I wouldn't even be wearing this if I had a choice in the matter."

"It stays close to your heart always."

"Stop it," Sarah said angrily.

"I know he is hard sometimes, but he does want you back by his side," the Wiseman ignored her and continued.

"Stop it! Stop treating this like some game you can win by getting me to admit I want to go back, or that you're right and I miss him. I am trying to survive here. I'm really, _really_  trying to survive, and if you think I don't spend every second thinking about him, well…you'd be wrong." Sarah felt her insides tighten at the admission. "So yes, I do. Are you happy now?"

"Since when did surviving become enough?"

"Well it's what I've got," Sarah sneered at the Wiseman.

"You could still have it."

"No I couldn't. I'm here, he's there and that's the way it should be," Sarah said flatly.

"Why?" the Wiseman questioned.

"I have my reasons."

"Do you now?"

"Yes, I do."

"I think they're crumbling around you every day, Sarah."

"No."

"I think you have justified your actions so much they have come full circle back to guilt."

"I am not playing, Wiseman."

"I think you can't take the pendant off because you won't sever your last tie with him and with the Underground."

"I cannot take this goddamn pendant off because it will not come off."

"Because it is your way back."

"You know what, you're the last person I have to explain myself to. I made my choice, and you made yours, and here we are."

"Yes, Sarah, here we are."

"Why did you do it? You had a son; you had a kingdom," Sarah asked.

"And I didn't have her."

"You weren't going to get her back," she pointed out.

"This I knew." The Wiseman paused, thinking.

"As I've told you before, there is always a price to be paid, Sarah. To keep her, I now have to live eternity without her, or my son. I did the last thing I could – the only thing I could. Anything less than Avaina…her head on that stick, this was as close as I could come to taking that back. I made a promise to her to protect her. At the very least I could protect her memory."

"And in turn you abandoned your kingdom and your son."

"I did not know that would happen. There must be a balance, you see. In keeping his mother's memory sacred, there could be no further memories with his father. I could scream out his paternity to the high heavens, and no one would hear me. That is my punishment. I was to be high king, I was to have the most beautiful bride, and she gave me my heir. Instead I became the feeble old man at the centre of the Labyrinth to whom nobody listens," the Wiseman said bitterly. "I gave up my identity to change hers."

"You know what? Jareth probably wishes you hadn't." Sarah said unsympathetically. "A dead parent is one thing; one who abandons you is another."

"Well Jareth probably also wishes you didn't seduce him to steal his pendant and rip through the crack out of the Underground thereby throwing his kingship into chaos, so I think we're both guilty of going against Jareth's wishes every now and then, hmm?" the Wiseman said with more than a bit of sarcasm in his voice.

"Fine," Sarah said angrily. "You're right. But at least I had a good reason for leaving. I can't and won't sacrifice my life just to make him happy. It would never have worked that way. We have to both want to be there."

The Wiseman rolled his eyes. "Do you want to see him?"

"Of course I want to see him," Sarah snapped.

"Then I think, young queen, that we've reached the point in the conversation where it should be between you and he and not you and I."

Sarah felt her stomach flip.

"He can't come here. I have his pendant. He can't come Aboveground without it."

"No, he simply cannot go home without it. A couple of weeks or months up here without returning and he will die. So no, it would not be in his best interest to come," the Wiseman explained.

"Then why is he?" Sarah asked.

The Wiseman smiled.

"My dear girl, did you ever doubt he would?"

Before Sarah could say any more the Wiseman vanished from her mirror.

 


	23. Chapter 23

The trouble was, the Wiseman had neglected to tell her exactly when Jareth was coming. Sarah worried every night as she lay in bed, wondering if this would be the night he came to take what was his. As much as she wanted to be rid of the heavy thing around her neck, she needed it. It was her only way back, if she wanted it. She wasn't sure if she did or not. A queen, the Wiseman had said. A word, she thought, that carried too much weight and not enough reward.

Sarah thought about laying iron across her bedroom door, at least to give her that modicum of privacy and control over his supposed visit, but she decided it was pointless. Jareth went wherever Jareth wanted. It didn't matter in the end if he came in the middle of the night to strangle the pendant from her neck or in the early morning to kiss her awake.

Sarah remembered the look of sadness and acceptance that had clouded his eyes the moment before she vanished from the clearing. She very much doubted he was coming for revenge or begging her return. It was just as the Wiseman said it would be: he was coming for her.

Her dreams of him had stopped entirely. Instead she was left with just emptiness in the place of where dreams should be. Jareth had told her once that their dreams were entwined together. They always did used to come back to him in the end. She wondered if his dreams had the same emptiness now.

It was almost a month after she'd spoken to the Wiseman when Sarah began packing up her bedroom. She hadn't sold her place yet, nor had she decided where she was going; she only knew she couldn't stay here.

She had just finished getting ready for bed. Standing at her mirror, she pulled her hair down from the tightly wound bun it was in. Her hands softly grazed a piece of crystal, and her eyes flitted down to it. She'd found it after packing up her room. A small piece of a broken vase from what seemed like so long ago now.

A movement caught the corner of her eye – a long-expected visitor. When she brought her eyes up again she started slightly at seeing the outline of a dark figure leaning languidly against her doorframe. She closed her eyes, took a breath, and turned around. When she opened them he was still there.

"Jareth," his name fell from her lips so easily. How different this was than any of their previous first meetings.

"Sarah." His tone was even and showed no sign of either anger or joy. As she had anticipated.

"You're here." Her hand absently flitted to the pendant tucked into her nightshirt.

"So I am." He hadn't moved an inch from his place in her doorway, and she realized he was waiting for her to set the tone of the reunion. This confused her, as it was plain to Sarah how vulnerable he'd made himself coming here. By choosing not to fight her, he was only increasing his vulnerability. There were few things Jareth hated more.

With a twist of his hand her well-worn copy of The Labyrinth appeared in his palm. He extended it towards her.

"I believe you forgot this."

Sarah warily reached out to take the book, the tips of her fingers grazing his as it slid from his palm. She placed the book down on her dresser, careful not to lose sight of him.

They stood like that in silence for a few moments, neither quite capable of saying what needed to be said. Sarah finally managed to break the silence and asked the question that was pulsing through her mind.

"Why are you here now?" she blurted out. Why did you come? seemed a rather obviously-answered question so she settled for what was really bothering her. Why didn't he come sooner? Why didn't he call for her the way the Wiseman had? Why didn't he anything until now?

Jareth paused and tilted his head slightly in her direction.

"I had a rather interesting conversation with your friend the Wiseman."

"He is not my friend," Sarah immediately answered, cutting him off.

"Regardless." Jareth shrugged and looked down, appearing to be terribly interested in the hem of his gloves. "I spoke with him after your … departure. He brought to light a few matters of which I was previously unaware."

"Such as?" Sarah asked as easily as she could manage. She very much doubted the Wiseman had told Jareth anything that was not in his direct benefit to do so.

Jareth looked at her then. The first time he'd caught her eye since he'd appeared. Sarah felt the familiar sensation of falling backwards through something she couldn't control.

"He told me about your mother, about you. About his plans for you with the Goblin Kingdom and the Labyrinth."

Sarah let out a breath.

"Did he tell you why he did any of it?"

"Do you regret what you did in the clearing?" he asked, ignoring her question.

"Not for a moment," she answered without hesitation.

He paused and stared at her before answering.

"He said I needed you. I needed you to assist me as my queen."

"And what do you think?" Sarah asked hesitantly, unsure of which answer she wanted.

"I thought he had lost what little remained of his mind. I ignored him and decided to do what I had always done."

Sarah's eyes flitted downwards. Jareth took the opportunity to step into the room and walked to stand inches from her.

"For nearly a thousand years, Sarah, I have ruled the Goblin Kingdom and its Labyrinth. I create and shift the lands and the dreams of all those who enter it. I spent my days maintaining some semblance of order with the Goblins, conversing with other kingdoms and organizing affairs as common as the revenue of the Goblin Market and as far-flung as a new treatise for a species of gremlin to take up residence in the lower levels of the bog. I am the King, Sarah, and I was very pleased with my life."

Sarah rolled her eyes, and Jareth caught her chin with his hand.

"I discovered, that when I tried to return to this life I had so previously enjoyed. The life I had before the first time you called to me. Before your first trip to my kingdom brought down bridges and cities, before your second communication caused the loss of memory and left its monarch desperately searching, and before your third encounter where you took my very tie to the Aboveground with you. Before any of you happened, I tried to go back to that, but found I could not. My world was not as I knew it or wanted. It was the same castle and the same labyrinth it had always been. But it stopped feeling like mine. I was missing what gave life to my labyrinth."

Sarah tensed beneath his grasp, and she felt his hand tighten slightly.

"Instead of reviling you as any good monarch should, I find myself unable to go very far without you. The things we want make us weak, Sarah, and you have weakened me most of all.

"So now, Sarah, you have it all. Power over the kingdom you've always dreamed of," his hand fell from her chin and gently grazed the cord of the pendant, "as well as the love and power over the king who rules it."

Sarah pulled the pendant out from under her nightdress. "I never wanted any of that."

Jareth's eyes became hard. "A lie."

Sarah looked down to the glowing centre of the pendant. "I don't want it anymore, then."

Jareth was unrepentant. "I'm afraid that's what you've bought, my love."

Sarah met his gaze. "With what?"

Jareth's mouth tightened into a thin line. "If I'm not very much mistaken," he raised a hand to cup the side of her face, "your heart."

Sarah's eyes wavered from his slightly. "Give it back," she whispered.

"Never," he replied, bringing his other hand to her back.

Because she knew it was going to happen anyway, and because she couldn't deny anymore how she wanted it, she grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and kissed him.

His lips met hers eagerly. Her fervour matched his desperation and the anger she could feel in his kiss. It was back again, the feeling of falling and rising all at the same time. The feeling only he'd ever been able to give her. The kisses they'd given in dreams were never right. They were missing the unnameable element of him. The pendant lit hot against her chest. She wondered if Jareth could feel it, too.

"I know who you are, Sarah," he left the words lingering just outside their kiss, "and I will never deny you."

Sarah smiled and began to kiss the line of his jaw.

"That is because you can't."

She could feel the curve of his smirk on her lips.

"You will always be who you really are with me, and that scares you."

Her lips quirked into a half smile, and she brought her kisses back up to the curve of his mouth.

"I know who I am, Jareth. That doesn't scare me. And for the record, Jareth, nothing about  _you_  ever did."

She leaned in as close to his mouth as she dared and delicately grazed her lips against his. Just as he brought his lips forward in craving, she slowly took one step back and smiled. The lust and want for her in his eyes was unmistakable. She wasn't lying when she said she never wanted power over him, but she couldn't deny it had its moments.

"So, my love," his voice slightly breathless, "where do you suggest we go from here?"

Some of the courage she'd previously had floated away, but Sarah managed to keep her composure.

"Jareth, the only thing I've ever wanted was a life that was mine."

She saw him visibly tense.

"I gave you that. I gave you everything you wanted and more."

Sarah sighed. There was still so much he didn't understand.

"No, you didn't. I thought I wanted this life," Sarah gestured around her room. "One where I built a world of my own with people I could love and care about. Here I thought I was in control. But I've realized lately that I'm not. I'm really, really not. I don't control my job, I don't control my relationships, and having tea with my own father has become stressful. I thought I could live in the Labyrinth and be happy there, but I can't. Going back to the way things were, that's no good either. Because as much power as you say I have over you, in the Goblin Kingdom, you will always have power over me. Because that life was created by you and given to me by you, and I'll always know that it in turn can be taken away from me.

"We are building our lives around each other, you and I. I missed you, every single day I was up here. I avoided saying your name for weeks because I worried that alone would be enough to call you to me, and I didn't know if you would come or what I would even do if you did. I wanted you with me, but I could not live with what it would cost either of us to have that. The sad truth of the matter is, I cannot live here without you anymore than you can stay Underground without me. And so no, I don't know where we go from here."

Jareth brought his hand up to cup her chin. Sarah had been trying to avoid looking at him, but he pulled her eyes towards his. He slowly let his fingers trail down her neck and to his pendant.

"I did not come here with the intention of forcing you to return to the way things were."

Sarah felt the pendant come to life with his touch. The warmth that was previously restricted just to her chest began to flood her entire body. He was amplifying its power.

"This pendant," he said slowly, "can only be worn by a goblin monarch. It can only be taken from one goblin monarch by another." He abandoned the pendant and returned his hand to her face.

"You are the Queen of the Goblin Kingdom, Sarah. Nothing you or I do will ever change that. The land and its creatures have spoken. You claimed it yourself years ago, and I should have known then. Your kingdom is as great because it is the same kingdom as mine. The creatures, you named them, Sarah, you know and control their names so they will always bend to you. More than that, they do so willingly."

He sighed and dropped his hand from her face.

"I will not demand your love, as much as I may want it. Nor will I ask for your hand. I do not need a wife; I need a queen."

Sarah finally noticed the apprehension in his eyes. Where he had always been so sure, here his confidence faltered.

"Come home to the Labyrinth with me," he continued. "If you do, you will sit by my side as my equal, as my queen. This I swear to you."

Sarah fiddled with the pendant around her neck. The warmth his touch gave it had already left her body. She allowed herself a moment to consider all he was offering her and all he was asking of her. Sarah could not deny just how much she wanted to go with him. To wake everyday in the glow of the Underground light, the warmth of him next to her.

But there was also another part of her that was whispering doubts in her ear. How Jareth would have to be taken at his word. How there would be no going back if she said yes. How the Underground was still foreign and at times frightening to her. How much she and Jareth still had to learn about each other. How much she still had to learn about being a queen.

"I don't actually know how to use my powers," she said quietly.

"I will teach you," he quickly answered.

"You risked everything to come here. How do you expect to go home if I say no?"

Sarah thought she saw a flash of grief in his eyes but the next moment it was gone.

"You saw what is happening to the Labyrinth in your dreams. It is cracking at the seams. There will not be much of a kingdom left without you. I cannot go home and I cannot rule without you by my side."

"Because you love me, you abandoned your kingdom?" she asked.

Sarah saw his fists clench at his sides and his mouth tighten into a straight line.

"You never said it," she said evenly.

Jareth moved to take a step towards her and then stopped. Sarah thought he looked almost angry at her.

"I told you every chance you gave me."

Sarah glanced down.

"You said a lot of things, Jareth, but you didn't say that."

Sarah heard him let out a tired breath.

"Sarah," she looked up at her name.

"You are what I have built my love around. You are the only thing that holds me to it. Every time I grow impatient or frustrated with you, the sensation still manages to coil itself around me. Every time you smile or scowl it wraps tighter. I might have had a choice in the matter once, I do not know. I only know that everything I am and everything I know, you seem to have left your mark on. You must understand, there is nothing else. I have never loved, I have just you."

There was an unfortunate familiarity to his words. Sarah knew well the feeling of being bound to someone so strongly that it was beyond her control. The fifteen-year-old girl he'd chased through tunnels and crystal ballrooms. Her eighteen-year-old self, struggling not to become wrapped up in her dreams of a fair-haired creature with an impossibly severe stare. The twenty-eight year old who knew better than to imagine a world without him anymore and that dreams alone could never be enough. She still wanted everything. She acknowledged that the definition of the word might have to be changed slightly. Sarah sighed with the weight of her decision.

"Do you remember months ago, that night in your study, when I asked you to give me something?"

Jareth gave a curt nod and dropped his gaze, choosing to tug at the hem of his gloves again. Sarah's eyes flitted closed as she remembered the sensation of that first kiss in her memory. She was right; it had left a mark.

"I didn't really expect you to give me the whole kingdom." She smiled and licked her top lip. "But I'll take it."

His head snapped up, and she saw his eyes widen slightly. She shook her head with disbelief and stepped towards him, laying a hand on his chest.

"And in return for this generous gift, I think it is only fair that I give something back."

Jareth's eyes darted down to the pendant, and Sarah rolled her eyes. She perched on the tips of her toes and kissed him once, softly on the lips.

"In the time I've been back here, I've spent a lot of it thinking. About my choices and words. I argued with myself a lot, because it isn't an easy thing to admit. But I can't live night-by-night hoping our dreams will meet. It isn't fair to say that you didn't offer me love when it should have been clear to me then…" she trailed off and shook her head to clear her thoughts. "As hard as it is to know and harder still to say, I love you, Jareth. So you do have it. My love is yours."

This made Jareth laugh out loud, and before Sarah could react he pulled her in and kissed her deeply. Sarah let the happiness rise up from inside her, and she kissed him joyfully back.

When they broke Jareth laughed again though slightly more out of breath than he was a moment ago.

"You said you love me."

Sarah threw her hands up in the air.

"I have apparently taken leave of my senses, but yes. As unfortunate as it is I love you."

Jareth laughed and pretended to be cross.

"Sarah, must you make everything so dramatic," he said with amusement behind his exasperation.

"Me?!" Sarah recoiled with a smile still on her lips. "You're right; I'm the dramatic one. Mister, 'Bursts into every room during thunder storms in a blaze of glitter.'"

Jareth shook his head, smiling.

"You are a very difficult woman to love."

Sarah tilted her head and stared at him in shock.

"The feeling is mutual, I assure you."

Jareth rolled his eyes and dismissed her with a wave of his hand.

"Okay just going to run through a few things here," Sarah said and crossed her arms in front of her chest. "You kidnapped my baby brother-"

"You asked," he interjected.

"Uh, sent the cleaners after me-"

"Also known as possibly the most ineffectual weapon the Labyrinth has to offer."

"Drugged me with your psychedelic peach dream dance."

"Technically Hoggle gave you the peach."

"Threw both Humongous and your damn goblin army after me."

"Of which you destroyed both, making sure to sack the city in the meantime."

"You know what, enough." Sarah pinched the bridge of her nose in frustration. "This is pointless."

"Only because you know I'll win," Jareth said smugly.

"Oh I do hate you," Sarah said with disdain.

Jareth grinned.

"Actually I believe you just said…what was it…that you loved me?" he mocked.

"No, no, that doesn't sound like me."

"The right words were 'my love is yours'."

"No, I hate you. Very much. Lots of hate."

Jareth grinned wider, and Sarah recognized the unmistakable look of wickedness in his eyes. He stepped closer to her and pushed her nightgown slightly down one shoulder.

"I believe I can find a way to work with hate," he muttered before laying kisses softly from her shoulder leading up to her neck. Sarah smiled; it felt nice to have him like this. A new sensation, without agenda or guilt, just this.

"Jareth," she murmured into his ear. "I want to go home."

He brought his eyes back up to meet hers.

"Then may I have my pendant back, my queen?"

Sarah smiled.

"No, I think I'll keep it. I earned it. But the Wiseman can tell us how to create another one, a gift from the Goblin Queen to the Goblin King, I think?" she said, raising her brows.

Jareth smirked and pulled her close to him.

"It seems fitting. I hope I can rely on you, then, to take us back?"

"One moment." Sarah reached out from around his hold to grab her copy of The Labyrinth off the dresser. "Now we're ready."

Sarah closed her eyes and let the right words come to her on their own.

"I wish for the Goblin King and Queen to go home to the Castle Beyond the Goblin City, right now."

Without opening her eyes she instantly smelled the dry stone, burning embers, and a faint odour of chicken feathers. Sarah smiled; she was home at last.


	24. Epilogue

**_Three Weeks_ **

Sarah felt the warmth of the bright morning sun on her face and rolled over onto her stomach. Peeking with one eye at the clock suspended in the air, she saw it was half past seven. He would be up already and milling about. The clock was for her benefit alone. He had told her that with the crown of the Goblin Kingdom came a strong power over time. If you were going to move it, you needed to always be able to tell it. He promised her that soon she wouldn't need the clock either. Slowly her powers would grow and become so natural to her, she would never remember living any other way.

She started to stretch from her place in bed and felt something softly graze her back. She smiled. He might be up, but he had waited for her. He began to run the tips of his fingers slowly over the curve of her back. His other hand joined the first and the palm of it began to softly stroke and massage her back and neck.

"What are you doing?" she asked, slightly dazed from sleep.

"Shh," he whispered. "You are the most exquisite piece I've ever seen, and if I'm going to play you properly, the instrument would do well to hush."

"Play me?" she said, confused. A small moan of pleasure escaped as he kneaded out a knot in her shoulder.

"Low C," he muttered. "But not quite right. I think a bit of tuning is required."

His hands found her hips and rolled her over onto her back. He was wrapped around in the sheets and had a now too-familiar, wicked smirk on his face. Sarah's lips twitched with a smile. This was good.

His fingers grazed down between her breasts, taking their time and leaving the barest of touches. His left hand began to gently caress one of her breasts while the right continued its path downwards to toy with her clitoris.

Sarah gasped and laughed slightly. Jareth's smile widened as he kissed the corners of her mouth.

"Hmm still a bit pitchy. I think we'll have to go lower."

He trailed a line of kisses down her body. The lips, the neck, her collarbone and shoulders. He kissed the space between her breasts and then each one individually. He kissed her down to her belly button and then began to kiss her between her legs.

Sarah's back arched as his tongue began to work rhythmically between her folds. It was slow and deliberate. Like he was taking his time because he knew he had all the time. Before when they had returned, their sex had been frenzied and desperate, but now, now it was a satisfying luxury. To be able to spend all day wrapped up in each other if they so chose. It seemed Jareth was choosing it. Sarah felt she wouldn't be complaining as his fingers returned to stroke her alongside his tongue.

Sarah laughed again as she felt the tension build up inside her.

"Jareth," she called his name as she knew he loved her to do. His name on her lips and his lips on her. It was their preferred method of communication.

He stopped for a moment and Sarah knew it was because he was smiling. His name had inclined him to take her even further. She grinned, pleased with herself.

He moved up from between her legs to crawl on top of her, careful not to remove his fingers from between her folds.

"What was that, love? I don't think I quite heard you?" He smiled at her smugly and began to move his fingers quicker within her.

Sarah gasped harshly and smiled back up at him. He could no doubt see the dark desire clouding her eyes; it matched his.

"Still think there's more work to be done, then? Still not sounding right?" she asked breathlessly.

"Oh yes," he said. "I'm not hearing what I need to yet. More work needs to be done, I think."

"I think you're right," Sarah smirked at him. "But how am I to sound to my full potential

without a bit of accompaniment?"

Jareth quirked an eyebrow at her in curiosity. Sarah hooked her leg around his waist and rolled them to get on top. She placed her hands on his shoulders and began to slowly kiss her way down him, just as he had done to her. She took him in her mouth and savoured the moan he let escape him.

"Tricky girl," he breathed. "But this is not how the game is played."

Sarah stopped in her movements, allowing him the advantage, and she found herself lying on her back again.

"I will just have to try harder," he told her as his hands found each of her breasts and his tongue went back to work inside her.

Sarah couldn't hold back this time. She dug her fingers into his shoulders and gave herself over to him. She would get him back later.

"Jareth…" she moaned his name as his tongue began to work faster.

"Yes, tell me what you want," he murmured softly into her thigh.

"More," she begged as she arched into him.

"Yes," he whispered against her, and Sarah knew she was done.

Jareth's tempo increased further as Sarah's orgasm rushed to meet her. She called out his name as wave after wave of pleasure overtook her. He did not stop; he continued on until her body relaxed and she collapsed, breathless.

"There now." He slunk forward back atop of her and brushed the hair from her face. "That was the sound I wanted to hear."

Sarah laughed, rolling her eyes, and kissed him softly on the lips. She curled up into his arms, deciding that today would indeed be an excellent day to spend in bed.

* * *

**_Five Weeks_ **

Summer in the Labyrinth was hot and dry. It hardly ever rained, and the kingdom prepared for months-long droughts.

Sarah's boots clacked on the dry stones. The dirt was coming up in clouds around her, and she was trying not to choke on it. Sarah lifted her hand and closed her eyes. Thinking carefully, she spoke clearly, making sure to mean what she said. The dirt parted from around her, making a path. Sarah smiled; she was getting better every day.

She reached the seat of the Wiseman, surprised she couldn't hear his bird on her approach. She realized that he had removed the hat and appeared to be expecting her.

"I bid the bird farewell for a few hours, as a courtesy to you, my lady," he said, noting her stare.

Sarah looked at him with a sort of bemusement.

"I believe that's the first courtesy you've ever afforded me, Wiseman."

"Still not calling me by my true name, I see," the Wiseman said with interest.

"That's not your name; that's not who you are anymore. You gave it up."

The Wiseman stared at her with a stony silence, but Sarah took no notice.

"Speaking of that, Wiseman, you said I'd forget all about you once I returned and took up my post as queen. But I haven't."

"You will. It might start slowly as the details begin to slip from your mind, or you could wake up one day and never remember my name at all."

Sarah tugged on the end of her ponytail. She would not allow the Wiseman to manipulate her, not again.

"I've thought a long time about what to do with you, Wiseman. Do I call for your beheading? Or craft a disguised reunion between you and Jareth? But the former would be too kind, and I think Jareth is better off without you. So I've decided to do the only thing that makes any real sense."

The Wiseman looked at her curiously.

"Care to elaborate, my lady?"

Sarah narrowed her eyes at him.

"I am your queen, and you will address me as such."

"You are not my queen," the Wiseman said evenly. "My queen is dead."

Sarah shook her head, she had expected such a response.

"I plan to do nothing, Wiseman. I plan to let you rot here at the true centre of the Labyrinth. You can lead the frightened parents and caretakers of children off track for years and years to come while Jareth and I live our lives between the walls of the castle, never giving you a second thought. Because you don't matter. You have less than zero importance in our lives anymore, and I have decided to treat you with exactly that amount of care. In the end you got what you wanted, Wiseman. Jareth has a queen by his side, but you will have to live with that being your final act in either of our lives. I've written a new law; it states that none are to come to you for counsel and you are to be treated as a pariah by all," Sarah finished, keeping her gaze even with the Wiseman's. She had said her piece.

"So you've decided to abandon me then?" the Wiseman asked slowly.

"Yes."

The Wiseman placed a hand in his pocket and withdrew it clenched into a fist.

"Come here."

"No."

The Wiseman sighed and opened his hand, extending the small item held within towards her.

"I am returning this to you, Your Majesty."

Sarah stepped forward carefully and quickly recognized the ring in his palm. She took it and considered it briefly before placing it on her finger atop her gloves. It still fit.

"You've kept this for thirteen years. Why didn't you return this to me until now?" she asked him.

The Wiseman shrugged.

"You never asked, and for a time it was in Jareth's possession. I only recently re-acquired it."

"It's just a silly piece of costume jewellery."

"Are you quite sure of that?" the Wiseman questioned her.

Sarah held the ring up to the sun and watched the blood red stone reflect the light.

"It's not, is it?"

The Wiseman shook his head.

"It's one of the crown jewels. It belonged to my mother and to my wife and then to you. It is a unique stone, one found only in the Underground. I made sure you were to receive it for your fifteenth birthday. I must say I was rather amused to see it placed in my donation box. I figured I would hold onto it until the day came when you would need it back."

"And now I am queen."

"And now you are queen." The Wiseman took Sarah's palm and pulled the ring from her finger. "This is a bloodstone. I carries the blood of his ancestors. It will help you be stronger and wiser. But you must wear it against your skin for it to work."

Sarah removed her left glove and slid the ring onto her third finger. When she had received it at fifteen, she pretended it was a Claddagh ring and wore it with the same intent. Her mother had owned one and so had her grandmother, but Sarah never got one. So the jewellery became a piece of a costume that she so often wore: the heroine shouting out lines in the park, who was promised to a handsome prince from a far off land.

"You're still wearing the pendant, I see."

The Wiseman reached out to touch it, but Sarah slapped his hand away.

"That is one of the things I've come to discuss with you. How did Avaina make this one, and how can I make another?"

"You're not giving it back, then?" the Wiseman asked with surprise.

"No, this one is mine."

"And Jareth is not wearing it in the interim because?" the Wiseman pressed her.

"Because. Now are you going to tell me how to make another or not? If you do, I might be persuaded to be more merciful towards you," Sarah said curtly to the Wiseman.

The Wiseman narrowed his eyes at her.

"It is also made with blood magic, as I'm sure you know. That one was forged with mine and the blood of my wife. This one will have to be made with yours and Jareth's. She retrieved the rubber for the cord from one of the trees in the forest, and the hollowed out stone she took from the Sea of Dreams. The two ends of our kingdom. The merging of our dreams was also involved. But the spellwork was hers alone, and I had no more part of it than the contribution of blood and dreams. So that is all I know to tell you."

Sarah sighed; she should have known it would be needlessly complicated.

"So pray tell, what mercy will you be granting me, fair queen?"

She could tell by the Wiseman's voice that he thought she was going to renege on her promise, but queens must keep their word.

"How much do you wish to see your wife again, Wiseman?" Sarah asked him gently.

For a moment she saw it. Such a familiar longing was present in the Wiseman's eyes. He reminded her, in that second, of Jareth.

"More than you could ever know."

Sarah slowly reached behind her and pulled out the knife of the Wiseman's that she'd run off with so long ago.

"Jareth will be High King one day, and I will be High Queen. Not for a long time, of course, but one day. So I think it is time we bury our dead, and buried is where they will stay."

The Wiseman eyed her knife and spoke with trepidation.

"The mercy?"

"You will be with your wife once more, which seems to be the one thing you've ever really wanted. Your love for her redeems you."

"You were never planning to abandon me were you?" the Wiseman said coldly.

"I would have, but I had hoped I wouldn't have to. This is pure iron, so it will be quick."

Sarah walked around and stood behind him, slowly placed the blade at his throat.

"This is your one chance," she whispered into his ear. "Make your choice. Forwards, or backwards?"

She felt the Wiseman sigh against her.

"You will be a fine queen, Your Majesty. Avaina would be proud. I shall tell her all about you, when I see her."

Sarah swallowed thickly.

"Please do."

Hard and fast she slit his throat open. His blood ran past his throne of books and seeped into the cracks of the maze.

Sarah paused for a moment, still holding the knife, wondering if the Labyrinth would notice the death of the old king. But nothing happened. Sarah took his beard and wiped the blade clean. She was right before; the old king had been dead for years.

Looking at the Wiseman's corpse, she raised her hands slowly. Her ring shining on her finger, she spoke without hesitation. The wind spun around the body. She lowered her hands and the wind died down. A statue of an old man, surrounded by books and small donation box, remained. Around his neck, so small it was barely visible, was the sigil of the Goblin Kingdom.

Sarah looked over her handiwork once before returning to the castle. A queen must be merciful.

* * *

**_Nine Weeks_ **

Sarah sat in the throne room. A new throne had been crafted just for her and was recently finished. She shifted uncomfortably in her seat. She now understood why Jareth laid about on his like he always did. They were horribly uncomfortable.

Sarah heard the sound of small footsteps and straightened in her throne. She wanted to give a good impression.

"Your Majesty!" Lickered ran headlong into the throne room but didn't make it far before tripping over his own feet and sliding along the floor to have his nose rest right at her shoes. "Your Majesty! He's here!"

Sarah reached down to set Lickered up straight.

"Good," she said, patting the dirt off Lickered. "Please tell him to come in."

Lickered nodded and ran quickly out the doors. She heard another unmistakable crash and sighed. It was lucky goblins were so durable.

She heard the first few hesitant steps before she saw him. His hat held in his hands, he bowed silently at her as soon as he stepped through the doors. Sarah smiled.

"Oh thank you, but you don't have to bow."

He looked up at her, wide eyed with surprise. She gestured for him to come closer, and he quickly obliged. When he was close enough, Sarah reached down and gently stroked his cheek.

"I just wanted to say, before anything else, how very sorry I am."

The dwarf looked up at her in confusion.

"Sorry, Yer Majesty? What for?"

Sarah bit her lip.

"Hoggle."

"You knows my name?" Hoggle sputtered.

Sarah nodded. "Do you know mine?"

"Of…of course, Yer Majesty, everyone knows your name," Hoggle choked to get the words out. "Yous the Goblin Queen Sarah."

Sarah looked away sadly. It was too much to hope for.

"Hoggle, I have an important task for you."

"You- you do?" Hoggle asked her warily.

"Yes, but first I need to tell you something. But it's a bit of a secret, so I need you to promise me that you won't tell anyone else."

"Yes Yer Majesty. I promise ya."

"Please, can you call me Sarah?" Sarah asked him.

"I…if you wish, Yer Majest-I mean Sarah."

Sarah gave him a wide smile.

"You don't know how long I've been waiting to hear you call my name."

"Er, you'd be right…I'm afraid I don't know," Hoggle said, confused.

Sarah rose from the throne and went to sit on the window ledge. From her vantage point she could see almost the entire labyrinth, and if she looked long enough, she could see it move and change.

"Hoggle, ten years ago I made a terrible mistake. I was eighteen years old and trying very hard to live a human life Aboveground, when every part of me called to return to the Underground. So I made a wish, a powerful one that banished every memory of me from the Underground. It was only recently my own memories were returned to me, and I came home to assume the throne of the Goblin Queen."

"I had heard er…rumours, Yer Maj-Sarah, that yous was human once upon a times."

Sarah laughed. "Once upon a time maybe. But human is a very hard word to define. I've done a lot of things lately that aren't very human at all."

Sarah looked towards Hoggle and noticed just how confused and, disappointingly, nervous he appeared standing all alone in her throne room.

"Hoggle, I'm so sorry, but when the memories of me were banished the memories of all my friends Underground were destroyed with them. Including yours. You were my best friend, Hoggle, and you can't even remember it. That's my fault, and I hope you'll find a way to let me make it up to you."

Sarah saw the confusion and shock registering on his face. She slowly stepped down from the window to crouch down next to him.

"My memories?" Hoggle asked her slowly

Sarah nodded.

"I don't have any friends," Hoggle said, stepping backwards from her. But Sarah placed her hands on his shoulders, keeping him still.

"Now that's not true. Whether you know it or not you have me. That is, if you'll still let me be your friend."

"I…of, of course Yer, er, Sarah."

Now it was Sarah's turn to appear surprised.

"You forgive me?" she asked softly, barely believing him.

"There ain't nothin' to forgive," Hoggle said assuredly.

Sarah felt like she might cry from happiness. Hoggle's friendship, it was the one thing that had always been missing from her home here.

"Why do you forgive me, Hoggle?" she asked him, not fully understanding.

Hoggle rubbed his hand against a familiar piece of plastic around his wrist.

"Somethin' tells me you'd do the same for me."

Sarah laughed looking, down at her old bracelet looking pretty worse for wear.

"Oh Hoggle," Sarah leaned in and hugged him tightly. After a few moments she felt the dwarf awkwardly hug her back. She'd have to work on hugs with him.

"Okay," she said, breaking away from the hug. "It's time to get down to business. I need you to go to the palace library. There you'll find another dwarf named Hilly. She'll tell you everything you need to know, but I'm going to ask you to seek out some things for me. Is that alright?"

Hoggle bowed to her slightly.

"Anything yous wishes, my queen."

"Hey," Sarah pointed a finger sharply at his chest. "That's Sarah to you, mister."

Hoggle gruffed and bowed once more before leaving.

Sarah let out a deep sigh. Two down, one to go. From the corner of her eye she registered the shadow lurking in the doorway to her left.

"Are you planning on skulking there all day?"

Jareth stepped forward and nodded his head towards her.

"I really wouldn't kneel there if I were you. I'm sure it's covered in all manner of chicken excrement."

Sarah rolled her eyes and held out her hand towards him. He walked to accept it and help her to her feet.

"You know, I could never figure why you so easily forgave the dwarf for his betrayal – "

"And took so long to forgive you?" Sarah interjected.

Jareth's eyes narrowed slightly, and Sarah knew she'd hit the nail on the head.

"Well I'm sure you saw what just happened. He'd do the same for me, but only if I could forgive him first. You want people to be less afraid? More loyal? Show them courage, and show them loyalty. They need to know what these words mean before they can ever mimic them."

"Then as for me?" Jareth asked.

Sarah supressed a smile, his small bit of insecurity about her still lingered.

"You already were loyal and courageous Jareth, just not for me, not then. I would have forgiven you if I'd thought it make any difference. But in my reality, it was just something else you could win from me."

If it had been anyone else, they would not have seen the hurt that crossed his face then. But Sarah was Sarah, and she always knew. She put his face between her hands.

"Don't sulk. You know as well as I do that's not who we are anymore. We're the Goblin King and Queen. We're Jareth and Sarah, and we're in love. And I should mention that you did win, so really, stop this."

He leaned down to kiss her. Sarah very much doubted whether his kisses would ever leave her anything but spinning, and she was glad for it.

His hand gently tugged at her pendant.

"You love me, but you will not return this."

Sarah pulled the pendant from his hand and tucked it back into the front of her shirt.

"I just sent Hoggle to get the items we need to make yours. It's a gift from the Goblin Queen to the Goblin King; that's how it's done."

Jareth tilted his head at her and smirked.

"Oh really? That's the way it's done? In the original version of this story I'm pretty sure the queen didn't steal the pendant from the king in the first place."

Sarah sighed.

"Yeah well in this version there's slightly less murdering…slightly."

Jareth gracefully traced the edge of her jaw with the tip of his index finger.

"So tradition, that's all there is to it then?"

Sarah kept her eyes fixed on his and tried her best to ignore his touch.

"It's not that simple."

"Then make it so."

"It's just…Jareth, I love you."

Jareth smiled like the cat who caught the canary.

"Mmm, I'll never get tired of you saying that. But please, continue."

Sarah twisted her hands uncomfortably.

"Jareth, I love you, but trust is built up over years and years, not months. You and I, we run into things without thinking. So we're in love, and I do trust you…as much as I can."

Jareth's smile vanished, and he dropped his hand from her face. Sarah could see he was seconds from storming out to brood somewhere in the castle where she wouldn't be able to find him. She grabbed him by the hand to stop him.

"It doesn't mean I love you any less, and believe me, I couldn't love you any more, but this is different. We will grow and learn and live together and suddenly one day, the pendant will just be a pendant. You can trust me as much as you do, and that's fine. Those are your feelings. Just like this has to do with mine. I love you, and I trust you, and I'm making you a pendant, and I'm not giving this one back. Give me time; I hear you've got plenty of that to spare."

Jareth slowly raised her hand and laid a kiss on the tips of her fingers.

"It's something you have plenty of as well now, Goblin Queen."

Sarah smiled and draped her arms around his neck playfully.

"And I'm so looking forward to spending all of it with you."

He smiled and leaned into her kiss. Making sure the doors to the room were firmly locked, Sarah decided there was no better time to officially break in her throne.

* * *

**_Four Months and Two Weeks_ **

Sarah stepped out onto the balcony to clear her head. Her dress trailed behind her, as many shades of black and violet as the night sky itself and sparkling with just as many stars. Her back was uncovered, that was his one request.

Sipping her champagne, she rested her arms against the stone railing. The sounds of the party still sang behind her as she glanced up at the moon. It still looked bigger than it should, but this time she knew Jareth had made it so for the party. She placed her ornate mask of black feathers and gold accents down as she leaned to let her head rest on her arms for a moment.

A few moments later she felt a gloved hand on her back, leisurely tracing its way up and down her spine.

"Too much champagne, my love?"

Sarah craned her head back to look at him. He was her perfect match, wearing an all black suit of his design made of the same material as hers. With the dark of the balcony, he blended right into the night. He'd left an opening at his chest where his new pendant sat against the bare skin. He'd had his request, and she'd had hers.

"There's no such thing."

"Mmm, spoken like a true fae queen."

He moved next to her, and she lazily rested her head on his shoulder.

"That's because I am a queen."

"Yes, you are. I take it you were very fond of our entrance tonight then?" he asked, stroking her hair.

Sarah smiled in satisfaction. As the newest monarch of the Underground, she and Jareth were bound by tradition to hold the next high feast celebration as a sort of test, and to give the rest of the Underground gentry the chance to properly gawk at her. The next feast was Samhain, and Sarah had decided on a masquerade. It seemed fitting.

As the guests of honour, they would be the last to enter the party. The Troll King and his wife Makala, the Fire King and his wife Volanti, the King of the Wastes and his wife Lintrette and then finally, The Goblin King and the Goblin Queen.

She had found out afterwards that Jareth had insisted upon the distinction. Sarah was fairly certain her bold entrance had much to do with the respect she'd been paid by the other monarchs.

"Halloween was always my favourite night of the year Aboveground. I thought if there was ever going to be a day where magic ran free, it would be Halloween for sure."

Jareth chuckled.

"Well you were not wrong. It is not uncommon for the creatures of the Underground to slip through the cracks this night to cause all manner of mischief and mayhem. It's significantly easier to travel from one world to the other on the high feast days, and Samhain most of all.

"Though you'd do well to uphold my ban on the goblins participating in what you call 'trick or treating'. They come back with sacks of sweets, and then suddenly it becomes my responsibility to deal with the toffee stuck to the ceiling of my throne room."

Sarah snorted with laughter with the image of Jareth, standing on his throne, attempting to peel the toffee off with a knife. Jareth huffed indignantly at her laughter, and Sarah gave him a playful shove before pulling him in by his lapels for a kiss.

Sarah kissed him for as long as she could. She would have been quite content to spend the rest of the night out on the balcony, just like that. Eventually though, she realized their behaviour was bordering on rude.

Sarah took Jareth's mask from where he'd left it next to hers on the railing. She placed the mask over his eyes. Jareth took her mask and did the same to her. Sarah smiled and perched on her toes for one last kiss.

"Shall we?" she asked offering him her hand.

Jareth grinned and took her gloved hand in his.

"Of course. Happy New Year, my love. Long live the queen."

Sarah smiled wider and squeezed his hand in hers.

"Happy New Year, Jareth. Long live the king."

Sarah and Jareth stepped back into the festivities as the old year died behind them.


End file.
